/ 


-A. 


J.  a  4, 


•"~**"~4~~~SSSS 


GUIDE-BOOK 


IN  THE 


BY    OSMON    0.    BAKER,    D.  D. 


ADAPTED  TO  THE  DISCIPLINE  OF  1884. 


SEW  YORK: 
PHILLIPS    &    HUNT. 

CINCINNATI: 
CRANSTON  &   STOWE. 

1884. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1873,  by 

NELSON  &  PHILLIPS, 
in  the  Oflice  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress  at  Washington. 


EDITORIAL   NOTE. 


IN  this  edition  the  principles  and  precedents  of  ecclesiastical 
jurisprudence,  as  set  forth  by  Bishop  Baker  in  former  editions, 
have  not  been  materially  modified.  Such  changes,  however, 
have  been  made  as  were  rendered  necessary  by  the  legislation 
of  the  last  General  Conference,  and  it  is  believed  that  the  work 
will  still  be  found,  as  heretofore,  an  important  aid  to  pastors  in 
administering  the  Discipline  of  the  Church. 

NEW  YOEJT,  October,  1884. 


PREFACE. 


THE  design  of  this  little  manual  is  to  furnish 
junior  preachers  with  a  brief,  plain  Guide  for 
the  correct  discharge  of  their  official  duties. 
We  have  made  no  attempt  to  explain  and 
defend  our  ecclesiastical  system ;  this  has 
been  sufficiently  done '  in  several  popular 
works,  which  are  widely  spread  among  our 
people.  Nor  have  we  aimed  at  endeavouring 
to  impress  our  rising  ministry  with  a  deeper 
sense  of  ministerial  obligation,  and  to  set 
forth  the  moral  and  religious  elements  which 
compose  the  character  of  "able  ministers  of 
the  New  Testament."  There  are  already 
many  extensive  and  able  treatises  upon  these 
varied  topics.  But  there  is  a  demand,  we 
apprehend,  for  a  practical  work  which  shall 


4  PREFACE. 

descend  to  the  very  minutiae  of  the  pastor's 
daily  duties. 

In  preparing  our  manual,  we  have  found  our- 
selves treading  in  an  unbeaten  path  :  no  work 
of  this  kind  has  been  attempted,  if  we  may 
except  Bishop  Hedding's  most  admirable  "  Dis- 
course on  the  Administration  of  the  Discipline." 
This  discourse  has  created  a  desire  for  a  more 
extended  work  of  the  same  general  character. 
By  the  extension  and  division  of  our  work, 
the  young  preacher  is  now  often  necessarily  put 
immediately  in  pastoral  charge,  and  is  conse- 
quently deprived  of  the  counsels  and  experi- 
ence of  senior  preachers,  which  were  formerly 
enjoyed. 

We  are  not  unaware  of  the  difficulty  of 
furnishing  a  work  which  shall  be  generally 
acceptable,  from  the  different  usages  which 
prevail,  to  some  extent,  in  different  parts  of 
the  country,  and  the  conflicting  opinions  of 
leading  men:  but  it  has  been  oui  aim  to 
ascertain  the  general  views  of  the  best  in- 
formed upon  the  several  topics  discussed,  and 
to  present  them  in  a  brief  and  lucid  manner. 


PREFACE.  O 

We  have  endeavoured  to  give  particular 
attention  to  the  several  sections  relating  to 
Church  trials ;  guarding,  on  the  one  hand, 
against  too  close  an  analogy  to  civil  proceed- 
ings and  mere  ecclesiastical  technicalities ; 
and,  on  the  other,  against  a  loose  and  arbi- 
trary mode  of  procedure.  The  evils  which 
the  Church  has  suffered  from  these  causes 
should  put  every  administrator  on  his  guard. 
But  we  have  found  it  impossible  to  express 
our  meaning  with  clearness  and  precision 
without  employing  legal  terms  more  fre- 
quently than  we  have  desired. 

This  work  is  not  presented  as  an  official 
one ;  it  is  simply  suggestive  and  advisory, 
for  which  the  author  is  alone  responsible.  It 
is  not  a  record  of  legal  decisions  by  which  the 
administration  of  the  Church  is  to  be  govern- 
ed, but  a  brief  compend,  exhibiting  rather  the 
usage  than  the  law  of  the  Church.  Most  ap- 
propriately can  we  employ  the  language  of  our 
late  senior  bishop  :  "  I  have  not  the  vanity  to 
suppose  it  is  free  from  enors,  but  it  is  an  offer- 
ing of  the  best  light  I  have  on  the  subject.  It 


PREFACE. 


may  be  proper  to  say,  however,  that  on  most 
of  the  points  which  contain  opinions  on  dis- 
cipline I  have  conversed  frequently  and 
largely  with  many  of  our  most  enlightened 
and  able  ministers,  and  they  agree  with  these 
opinions." 

For  many  years  past,  we  have  noted  down 
every  valuable  suggestion  which  we  have 
heard  or  read  relating  to  our  practical  econo- 
my ;  and  having  modified,  written,  and  re- 
written many  of  them  frequently,  we  are  not 
able  now  to  give  the  credit  which  is  due  for 
many  of  these  suggestions.  At  the  earnest 
request  of  many  friends  this  little  manual  is 
given  to  the  public,  hoping  that  it  may  prove 
a  vade  mecum  to  the  young  minister,  and 
render  some  aid  in  the  discharge  of  the  du- 
ties of  the  pastorate. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 
CHURCH   MEMBERSHIP. 

SECTION  I. — Members. 

Page 

1.  Pastors  the  constituted  authority  to  receive  members. .  .  21 

2.  Membership  should  not  depend  upon  a  vote 22 

3.  Receiving  members  residing  in  another  charge 22 

4.  How  expelled  members  can  be  received 23 

5.  How  withdrawn  members  can  be  received 24 

6.  Reception  of  members  from  other  orthodox  Churches. ...  24 

7.  Orthodox  Churches  defined 24 

8.  Membership  when  the  administration  has  been  incorrect.  25 

SECTION  II. — Probationers. 

1.  Caution  in  receiving  members  on  trial 26 

2.  By  whom  received 27 

3.  General  qualifications  required 27 

4.  Period  of  probation 28 

5.  Rights  and  privileges  of  probationers 29 

6.  Not  liable  to  Church  trial 29 

SECTION  III. —  Withdrawal. 

1.  Church  relation  depends  upon  the  pleasure  of  the  parties  81 

2    When  the  Church  can  be  a  party  to  a  withdrawal 32 

3.  When  a  member  can  claim  a  right  to  withdraw 32 

4.  The  Church  may  suffer  a  withdrawal 33 

5.  Relation  of  societies  which  reject  regularly  appointed 

pastors 84 

6.  When  a  request  to  withdraw  can  be  recalled 84 

1.  Relation  of  such  persons  as  refuse  to  perform  their  cove- 
nant vows 85 

3.  To  whom  the  request  to  withdraw  to  be  presented 35 


8  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  II. 
THE   CONFERENCES. 

SECTION  I. — Annual  Conferences. 

Pa^e 

1.  First  annual  conference . ,     .  3  > 

2.  Districts 3* 

3.  Circuits 37 

4.  Relation  of  episcopacy  to  the  general  and  annual  confer- 

ences    38 

5.  Prerogatives  of  the  president  of  an  annual  conference. . .  39 

6.  Division  of  circuits 41 

7.  Episcopal  decisions 42 

8.  Commencement  of  conference  year 43 

9.  Special  transfers 43 

10.  "Who  must  attend  conference 44 

11.  Preachers  refusing  to  go  to  their  work 44 

12.  The  General  Conference  order  abouf  receiving  members  45 

13.  Demanding  a  location 46 

14.  When  the  act  of  location  takes  place 4t> 

15.  Certificate  of  location 40 

1 6.  Readmission 4i> 

17.  Withdrawal  a  bar  to  readmission 4i> 

18.  Preachers  from  any  branch  of  the  Methodist  Church,  or 

from  any  Church  agreeing  with  us  in  doctrines 47 

19.  Admission  from  other  Churches 47 

20.  Rights  of  superannuated  preachers,  and  their  quarterly 

conference  relations 47 

21.  Preacher  on  trial 48 

22.  Term  of  service  on  an  individual  charge 48 

23.  Every  effective  preacher  must  receive  an  appointment. .  48 

24.  Preachers  appointed  to  schools  and  colleges 48 

25.  Preachers  on  trial 49 

26.  Advisory  character  of  conference  requests  respecting  ap- 

poiitments 49 

27.  Rights  of  transferred  ministers 49 

SECTION  II. — District  Conferences. 

1.  When  district  conferences  may  be  held 60 

2.  Of  whom  composed 60 


CONTENTS.  9 

Page 

3.  Meets?  once  or  twice  a  year 51 

4.  President  ....      51 

5.  Powers  of  district  conferences 51 

6.  Candidates  must  be  recommended 52 

1.  Are  not  authorized  to  renew  licenses 52 

8.  To  inquire  about  collections  and  opportunities  for  labor.  53 

SECTION  III. — Quarterly  Conferences. 

1.  Origin  of  quarterly  conferences 53 

2,  3.  Powers 54 

4.  Members 55 

5.  President 56 

6.  Secretary 56 

7.  Power  over  Sunday-schools  and  Sunday-school  societies  56 

8.  Sunday-school  report  of  preacher  to  be  journalized 5? 

9.  Time  of  holding  quarterly  conference,  how  fixed 57 

10.  Adjourning  from  day  to  day 57 

11.  Adjourned  by  the  president 57 

12.  Temperance 57 

13.  Quorum 58 

14  Approval  of  the  minutes 58 

SECTION  IV. — Leaders  and-  Stewards'1  Meetings. 

1.  Origin  of  leaders'  meetings 58 

2.  Of  whom  composed 60 

3.  Powers  and  duties 60 

4.  To  whom  class-leaders  are  responsible 62 

CHAPTER  III. 
MINISTERS. 

SECTION  I. — Bishops. 

1.  How  appointed 63 

2.  Duties  of. 63 

SECTION  II. — Presiding  Elders. 

1.  Origin  of  the  office 63 

2.  Nature  of  it 63 

3.  Decision  of  law  questions 61 

4.  Eolation  to  individual  societies 64 

5.  Permitting  a  preacher  to  leave  his  work bo 


10  CONTENTS. 

Page 

6.  Power  to  remove  preachers 65 

7.  Limitation  of  tune  applied  to  superannuated  and  local 

preachers 65 

8.  Superintendents  of  domestic  missions 65 

9.  Testimonials  of  applicants  for  foreign  mbsions 66 

10.  Subjects  of  missionary  correspondence 67 

11.  Presiding  in  an  annual  conference 67 


SECTION  II. — Preacher  in  Charge. 

1.  The  term  defined 68 

2.  Duties  of  the  preacher  in  charge 68 

3.  To  whom  responsible 72 


SECTION  III. — Local  Preachers. 

1.  Mode  of  obtaining  license 73 

2.  By  whom  given 73 

3.  Eenewal  of  license  refused  without  impeachment 73 

4.  How  long  a  license  is  valid 74 

5.  Ecclesiastical  year  denned 74 

6.  Ordained  local  preachers 75 

7.  Eecommendation  to  travel 75 

8.  To  whom  amenable 7(5 

9.  Prerequisites  for  ordination 76 

10.  When  local  preachers  from  British,  Irish,  and  Canada 

conferences  are  eligible 7  < 

11.  How  long  recommendations  are  valid 77 

12.  Control  of  appointments 7£ 

*3.  Withdrawal  of  local  preachers 73 


SECTION  IV. — Exhorters. 

1.  Early  recognized 78 

2.  Duties  of  exhortcrs 78 

8.  Under  the  direction  of  the  preacher  in  charge 79 

4.  Who  arc  eligible  to  be  exhorters 79 

5.  By  whom  licensed 80 

6.  To  whom  responsible 80 


CONTENTS.  11 

CHAPTER  IV. 
CERTIFICATES   AND   LOVE-FEASTS. 

SECTION  I. — Note  of  Recommendation. 

Pape 

1.  Who  are  entitled  to  such  note 81 

2.  "Withholding  a  certificate 81 

8.  Who  are  not  entitled  to  a  certificate 81 

4.  Removal  without  a  certificate 82 

5.  To  whom  a  member  is  responsible  after  he  has  taken  a 

letter 82 

?.  How  long  a  certifica'  s  remains  valid 82 

7.  All  proper  certificates  to  be  received 83 

8.  To  whom  certificates  should  not  be  given 84 

9.  By  whom  certificates  must  be  given 84 

10.  Certificates  to  those  who  withdraw 85 

11.  Certificate  of  official  standing 85 

12.  To  notify  the  pastor  within  whose  bounds  the  member 

removes 85 

SECTION  II. — Love-Feasts. 

1.  Origin  of  love-feasts 85 

2.  Why  discontinued 86 

3.  Design  of  their  institution  in  our  Church 87 

4.  Love-feast  tickets 88 

5.  Who  may  be  admitted 88 

6.  Love-feasts  at  the  quarterly  meeting 88 

CHAPTER  V. 
CHURCH  TRIALS. 

SECTION  I. —  Trial  of  Members. 

1.  CLristian  discipline  protected  by  civil  authority 89 

2.  Privileged  communications 91 

8.  Rights  of  members 92 

4.  Mr.  Wesley's  mode  of  removing  disorderly  members. . .  93 

SECTION  II. — President  of  the  Trial. 

1.  Preacher  in  charge 93 

2.  President  appointed  by  presiding  elder 95 


12  CONTENTS. 

raise 

8.  Junior  preacher  incompetent 96 

4.  Delivering  a  charge  to  the  committee 96 

SECTION  III. — Complaint. 

1.  Committee  of  investigation 96 

2.  Bill  of  charges 97 

3.  Insufficient  evidence 97 

4.  Period  within  which  responsible 93 

5.  What  is  indictable 98 

6.  Accessories  to  crime 98 

7.  Mode  of  drawing  bill  of  charges 99 

8.  Object  of  formal  charges 99 

9.  What  the  charge  must  involve 100 

10.  Correspondence  between  charges  and  specifications 100 

11.  How  expressed 100 

12.  Different  crimes  to  be  separately  given 101 

13.  To  what  extent  specific 101 

14.  What  errors  no  bar  to  the  proceedings 101 

15.  By  whom  charges  are  to  be  signed 102 

16.  When  to  be  signed  by  the  pastor 102 

17.  When  several  persons  are  involved 103 

18.  Notification  of  the  accused 103 

IP.  Where  the  notice  is  to  be  left 104 

SECTION  IV. — Select  Committee. 

1.  Who  eligible 104 

2.  By  whom  appointed 104 

3.  Character  of  the  committee 105 

4.  Duty  of  the  committee 106 

5.  Verdict  to  be  based  on  testimony 107 

6.  Making  up  judgment 107 

7.  Relation  of  the  presiding  officer  to  the  committee 109 

8.  Ambiguous  or  equivocal  terms 110 

9.  Females  entitled  to  vote 110 

SECTION  V.—TAe  Trial. 

1.  Duty  of  the  presiding  officer 110 

2.  Mode  of  conducting  a  trial Ill 

3.  Confession  of  guilt 112 

4.  Refusing  to  answer .112 


CONTENTS.  13 

Page 

5.  Second  indictment „ 112 

6.  Plea  of  non-reception 113 

7.  Plea  in  abatement 113 

8.  New  issues 113 

"*     9.  Ruling  out  specifications 114 

10.  Adjournment  by  presiding  officer 114 

11.  Immaterial  facts 115 

12.  Evading  a  trial 115 

13.  Limited  to  the  charge 115 

14.  Refusing  to  entertain  bill  of  charges 116 

15.  Dismissing  the  case 116 

16.  Counsel  to  be  restricted  to  the  members  of  the  Church. .  116 

17.  Where  the  trial  should  be  held 117 

18.  Testimony  not  to  be  erased  without  consent 117 

19.  Delivering  a  charge  on  trials  of  preachers 117 

SECTION  VI. — General  Laws  of  Evidence. 

1.  Should  be  understood 117 

2.  First  rule,  evidence  correspond  to  the  allegation 118 

3.  Second  rule,  sufficient  if  the  substance  be  proved 118 

4.  Third  rule,  obligation  of  proving  lies  upon  the  complain- 

ant   119 

5.  Fourth  rule,  the  best  evidence  must  be  produced 120 

6.  Hearsay  evidence 120 

7.  "When  it  is  *x>  be  admitted 121 

SECTION  VII. —  Witnesses. 

1.  Number  of  witnesses 121 

2.  Party  in  the  suit 122 

3.  Husband  and  wife 122 

4.  Incompetent  witnesses 123 

5.  Atheists 12-3 

6.  "  Witnesses  from  without " 124 

7.  Admissibility  a  question  of  law 1 24 

8.  The  pastor  as  a  witness 124 

SECTION  VTH. — Examination  of  Witnesses. 

1.  By  whom  first  examined 125 

2.  Examined  out  of  each  other's  hearing 125 

3.  Mode  of  giving  testimony 125 

4.  Leading  questions 125 


14  CONTENTS. 

Page 

5.  Wilting  their  testimony 126 

6.  Impression  and  belief. , 126 

7.  Correction  of  testimony 127 

8.  When  exceptions  should  be  taken 127 

9.  Kefusing  to  answer 127     ' 

10.  Questions  by  presiding  officers 127 

11.  Putting  under  oath 127 

12.  Evidence  of  good  character 128 

13.  Impeachment  of  witnesses 128 

SECTION  IX. — Depositions. 

1.  When  to  be  taken 129 

2.  Notification 129 

8.  Form  of  notice 130 

4.  Form  of  deposition ISO 

5.  Should  be  sealed  up 131 

6.  Ex  parte  deposition 131 

7.  Commission  at  conference 132 

8.  Part  of  a  deposition 132 

SECTION  X. — Appeal. 

1.  Privilege  of  appeal 132 

2.  Whether  it  can  be  entertained 133 

8.  Bar  to  appeal 133 

4.  No  appeal  from  record  of  withdrawal 134 

5.  When  to  be  taken 134 

6.  Imperfect  records 135 

7.  Kecords  not  signed 135 

8.  Mode  of  conducting  appeals ,  136 

9.  Admitting  appeals 136 

10.  Power  of  appellate  courts 138 

11.  Decisions  of  appellate  courts 1 38 

12.  New  evidence 139 

13.  Kelation  of  expelled  members  whose  cases  have  been 

remanded 139 

14.  Quarterly  conference  cannot  reopen  a  case  after  an  ap- 

peal is  taken 140 

15.  Effect  of  reversing  a  decision 140 

16.  Eestoration  of  official  relation 140 

17.  When  a  decision  is  final 141 

18.  Eelation  of  a  person  who  has  taken  an  appeal 141 


CONTENTS.  15 

Paw 

. 9.  Appeals  to  be  entered  on  the  records     142 

5JO.  Prosecuting  appeals    142 

21.  Power  of  presiding  oilicer  in  case  of  appeals 142 

22.  May  change  the  venue  on  demand  of  cither  party 143 

SECTION  XI. — New  Trial. 

1.  By  what  authority  granted 143 

2.  Eight  of  the  pastor 143 

3.  Steps  to  be  taken 143 

4.  When  to  be  allowed 144 

SECTION  XII. — Trial  of  Local  Preachers. 

1.  Ministerial  responsibility 145 

2.  When  a  committee  to  be  called 145 

3.  Number  of  the  committee 146 

4.  Who  may  constitute  the  committee 147 

5.  Mode  of  conducting  the  investigation 147 

C.  By  whom  suspended 147 

7.  Acquittal  no  bar  to  subsequent  trial 148 

8.  Mode  of  conducting  the  trial 148 

9.  What  testimony  to  bo  admitted 148 

10.  Trial  in  the  absence  of  the  accused 149 

11.  Punishment  awarded  by  quarterly  conference 145 

12.  Limit  of  quarterly  conference  action 149 

13.  When  the  decision  to  be  given 15\T- 

14.  Charges  not  to  be  altered 150 

1 5.  Not  self-accuser 150 

16.  Case  before  the  civil  tribunal 150 

17.  Counsel  not  disqualified  as  members 151 

!  8.  Rule  under  which  the  case  is  brought 152 

SECTION  XIII. — Trial  of  Traveling  Preachers. 

1.  Nature  of  investigating  committees 152 

2    Of  what  offenses  take  cognizance 152 

3.  Eeference  at  the  annual  conference 153 

4.  Eeference  to  the  presiding  elder  for  examination 154 

5.  Acquittal  by  the  committee  no  bar  to  subsequent  trial. .   154 
fi.  By  whom  suspended 155 

7.  Committee  when  conferences  are  divided 155 

8.  Powers  of  presiding  officer  in  the  examination  of  a  pre- 

siding elder 155 


16  CONTENTS. 

Page 

9.  Place  of  holding  the  investigation 155 

10.  For  what  offenses  arrested 156 

11.  Form  of  trial .' 15G 

12.  Trial  in  the  absence  of  the  accused 157 

13.  A  suspended  preacher  cannot  afterward  be  expelled  for 

the  same  offenso 157 

14.  Period  of  suspension 15? 

15.  Location  without  consent * 158 

16.  Duty  of  the  secretary 158 

17.  Committee  cannot  sit  after  the  final  adjournment  of  con- 

ference                                              .  159 


SECTION  XIV. —  Church  Offenses. 

1.  Specific  rule 159 

2.  The  different  rules 159 

3.  When  Church  labor  is  required 160 

4.  Disseminating  erroneous  doctrines 161 

5.  Mode  of  treating  such  as  disseminate  errors 162 

6.  Slander 162 

7.  When  the  truthfulness  of  the  statement  may  be  proved.  163 

8.  By  whom  the  charge  of  slander  must  be  made 163 


SECTION  XV. — Penalty. 

1.  Design  of  penalty 163 

2.  Different  awards. 164 

3.  Forgiveness 164 

4.  Censure  and  suspension 166 

5.  Period  of  suspension 166 

6.  Penalty  based  upon  charges 166 

7.  Kepelling  from  love-feasts 167 

8.  Penalty  for  maladministration 167 

9.  Keadmission  of  expelled  members 167 

10.  Kestoration  by  the  annual  conference 168 

11.  No  discretionary  power  given  to  the  president  after  the 

verdict  is  rendered 168 

12.  Public  confession 169 

13.  "  Eeading  out "  of  society 169 

14.  Eefusing  to  comply  with  the  requisition  of  the  Church. .  170 


CONTENTS.  17 

SECTION  XVI. — Arbitration. 

Pag* 

1.  History  of  the  rule 1TO 

2.  Discretionary  power  of  the  pastor 171 

3.  Definition  of  terms 171 

4.  Arbiters  members  of  the  Church 171 

5.  President  of  the  arbitration 172 

6.  Mode  of  conducting  an  arbitration 172 

7.  When  required  to  arbitrate 172 

8.  Dispute  with  a  corporation 173 

9.  Eefusing  to  arbitrate 173 

10.  Lawsuits 173 

11.  Accounts  of  those  "  who  fail  in  business  "...       173 


CHAPTER  VI. 
CHURCH   PROPERTY. 

SECTION  I. — Building  Churches  and  Parsonages. 

1.  Pecuniary  liabilities 175 

2.  Personal  liability  of  the  building  committee 176 

3.  Liability  when  they  exceed  the  estimated  expense 177 

SECTION  II. —  Tnistees. 

1.  By  whom  Church  property  is  held 177 

2.  Mode  of  creating  trustees 179 

8.  "Who  are  eligible  as  trustees 179 

4.  Limitations  of  power 180 

5.  Entitled  to  possession 181 

6.  For  what  purposes  only  the  church  can  be  used 182 

7.  Trustees  of  an  unincorporated  society 182 

8.  Term  of  office 182 

9.  Powers  of  trustees  and  stewards 183 

10.  To  whom  responsible 184 

11.  Powers  restricted  to  the  objects  of  their  creation 184 

SECTION  III. — Pews. 

\.  Legal  rights  of  pew  owners 184 

8.  Right  of  occupancy  on  all  public  occasions 186 

2 


18  CONTENTS. 

Paire 
8.  Ecstriction  of  rights 187 

4.  When  a  right  expires 1ST 

5.  Contract  for  a  pew  must  be  written 1 88 

6.  Pews  as  real  or  personal  estate 188 

7.  Exempt  from  taxation 188 

8.  Selling  pews  at  auction 189 

9.  Form  of  deed  of  a  pew 189 


SECTION  IV. — Subscription  Paper*. 

1.  To  whom  made  payable 190 

2.  When  payment  must  be  demanded 191 

3.  Conditional  subscriptions 191 

4.  Fictitious  subscriptions 192 

5.  Deductions  by  the  collector 192 

6.  "VVLen  not  collectable  ..  .  192 


CHAPTER  VII. 
MINISTERIAL    SUPPORT. 

SECTION  I. — Allowance. 

1.  Salaries  at  different  periods I J3 

2.  Support  and  supplies 1 1)3 

3.  Fifth  collection 198 

4.  Chartered  fund *. 199 

5.  Traveling  expenses  of  preachers 199 

6.  Traveling  expenses  of  editors 199 

7.  Estimating  committee 200 

8.  Appropriations  to  those  in  debt  to  the  Book  Concern. ..  201 

9.  Supply  of  the  pulpit  during  the  session  of  the  annual 

conference 201 

10.  Absent  on  official  business 201 

11.  Serving  a  corporation  or  benevolent  institution 201 

12.  Suspension  cuts  off  claim 202 

13.  Widow's  claim 202 

14.  Adopted  children 202 


CONTEXTS.  19 

SECTION  II. — Stewards. 

Pana 

1.  Origin  of  stewards 203 

2.  Their  duties 203 

3.  By  whom  appointed 207 

4.  To  whom  responsible 207 

5.  Kecording  stewards 207 

6.  Resignation  of  office 208 

7.  Stewards  when  two  circuits  arc  united 208 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
RULES   OF   OBDEK. 

1.  Parliamentary  rules 209 

2.  Temporary  organization 209 

3.  Permanent  organization 211 

4.  Presiding  officer 211 

5.  Secretary : 213 

6.  Members 215 

7.  Motions 216 

8.  Indefinite  postponement 217 

9.  Laying  on  the  table 217 

10.  Referring  to  a  committee. 218 

11.  Division  of  a  question 218 

12.  Filling  blanks 219 

13.  Amendments , 21& 

14.  Privileged  questions 222 

15.  Adjournment 222 

16.  Orders  of  the  day 223 

17.  Incidental  questions 224 

18.  Questions  of  order 224 

19.  Previous  question 225 

20.  Order  of  proceeding 226 

21.  Order  in  debate 228 

22.  Taking  the  question 230 

23.  Reconsideration 231 

24.  Committees 232 

25.  Reports  of  committees 233 

26.  Minority  report 233 

27.  Committee  of  the  whole 234 

29.  Rules  of  the  General  Conference  of  1884. . .  . .  236 


20  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  IS. 
FORMULAS. 

SECTION  I. — Formulas  for  Preachers  in  Charge. 

Page 

1.  Note  of  recommendation  to  :i  member 248 

2.  Exhorter's  license 249 

3.  Recommendation  to  a  local  preacher 249 

4.  Class-book 250 

5.  Church  register  for  a  successor 250 

6.  Kegister  of  the  children 250 

7.  Collections  for  benevolent  objects 251 

8.  Steward's  certificate 251 

9. .  Benevolent  institutions 251 

10.  Wills 252 

SECTION  II. — Formulas  for  Presvling  Elders. 

1.  License  of  a  local  preacher 254 

2.  Recommendation  to  the  traveling  connection 254 

3.  Recommendation  for  deacon  or  elder's  orders 255 

4.  Recommendation  for  recognition  of  orders 256 

5.  Recommendation  for  restoration  of  credentials 256 

6.  Superannuated  preacher's  certificate 257 


A  GUIDE-BOOK 


ADMINISTRATION   OF   THE  DISCIPLINE. 


CHAPTER  I. 

CHURCH  MEMBERSHIP. 
SECTION  I. — Members. 

1.  THE  regularly-constituted  pastor  is  the 
proper  authority  to  admit  suitable  persons  to 
the  communion  of  the  Church.  The  preacher 
in  charge,  acting  at  first  under  the  authority  of 
Mr.  Wesley,  received  members  into  the  society, 
and  severed  their  relations  from  the  Church, 
according  to  his  own  convictions  of  duty.  In 
1784  the  assistant  was  restricted  from  giving 
tickets  to  any,  until  they  had  been  recommended 
by  a  leader  with  whom  they  had  met,  at  least 
two  months,  on  trial.  In  1789  the  term  of  pro- 
bation was  extended  to  six  months.  In  1836 
the  phrase,  "  give  tickets  to  none,"  was  changed 
to  "  let  none  be  received  into  the  Church." 


22  CHURCH   MEMBERSHIP.  [Chap.  1, 

Hence,  since  the  organization  of  our  Church, 
none  could  be  received  into  full  communion 
who  had  not  previously  been  recommended  by 
a  leader ;  and,  since  1840,  it  has  been  required 
that  the  applicant  pass  a  satisfactory  examina- 
tion before  the  Church,  respecting  the  correct- 
ness of  his  doctrine  and  his  willingness  to  ob- 
serve the  rules  of  the  Church. 
» 

2.  Membership  in  a  Christian  Church  should 
never  depend  upon  the  result  of  a  vote ;  and 
yet,  if  any  member  of  the  Church  is  not  satis- 
fied, with  the  evidence  presented,  of  the  moral 
and  Christian  character  of  the  candidate,   lie 
should  have  an  opportunity  to  make  objections 
to  his  reception.     In  no  case,  however,  should 
the  reception  of  a  person  be  a  matter  of  public 
debate  before  the  Church.     When  it  is  known 
that  objections  exist,  the  reception  of  the  person 
should   be    postponed,    and    private    measures 
adopted  which  will  secure  the  purity  and  peace 
of  the  Church. 

3.  It  is  unfavorable  to  good  government  in 
the  Church  for  a  preacher,  under  any  circum- 
stances,  to   receive   into    membership,   in   his 
charge,  a  person  living  in  the  bounds  of  another 
pastoral  charge;  yet  established  usage  justifies 


Sec.  I.]  MEMBERS.  23 

it  under  some  circumstances,  especially  in  cities, 
where  there  are  separate  charges,  and  where  it 
is  difficult  to  define  them  geographically.  But, 
in  these  circumstances,  comity  and  Christian 
courtesy  should  be  strictly  maintained.  It  is 
possible  that  there  may  be  cases  of  mere  preju- 
dice, without  any  tangible  cause,  that  might 
render  one  society  unwilling  to  admit  a  person 
to  membership  which  would  ndfcbe  a  sufficient 
reason  for  preventing  him  from  joining  another 
society  ;  but  when  responsible  members  of  the 
society  where  the  person  lives  present  specific 
objections  to  the  reception  of  the  person  in  an- 
other society,  especially  if  the  objection  grows 
out  of  former  Church  relations,  or  the  disciplin- 
ary action  of  the  Church,  the  person  should  not 
be  received  until  satisfaction  is  made  to  the  ag- 
grieved society.  (Bishop  Janes.) 

4.  "  If  a  member  has  been  expelled  according 
to  due  disciplinary  forms,  and,  without  chang- 
ing his  residence,  should  go  to  another  Meth- 
odist society  and  join  on  trial,  it  would  be  mal- 
administration for  the  preacher,  at  the  expiration 
of  six  months,  to  receive  such  a  person  into  the 
Church,  provided  that  no  satisfaction  had  been 
given  to  the  society  which  arraigned  him  ;  for 
the  Discipline  expressly  declares:  'After  such 


24  CHURCH    MEMBERSHIP.  [Chap.  I, 

forms  of  trial  and  expulsion,  such  persons  shall 
have  no  privileges  of  society,  or  of  sacraments, 
in  our  Church,  without  confession,  contrition, 
and  satisfactory  reformation.'  " — Bps.  Wauyh 
and  Janes. 

5.  A  member  who  has  withdrawn,  or  been 
expelled  from  our  Church,  and  who  never  after- 
ward connected  himself  with  another  evangel- 
ical Church,  cannot  again  be  received  unless  he 
joins  on  trial,  as  in  the  first  instance. 

6.  "  If  a  member  in  good  standing  in  any  other 
orthodox  evangelical  Church  shall  desire  to  unite 
with  us,  such  applicant  may,  by  giving  satis- 
factory answers  to  the  usual  inquiries,  be  re- 
ceived at  once  into  full  membership."     The  so- 
ciety must  decide  what  is  evidence  of  "  good 
standing  in  other  orthodox  Churches."     Letters 
of  dismission   and    recommendation    are    not 
necessarily   required,    as    some    denominations 
never  grant  such,  unless  they  are  to    be   pre- 
sented to  sister  Churches  of  their  own  denom- 
ination.    Such  persons,  however,  should  certify 
the  Churches  of  which  they  have  been  members 
of  their  intention  to  join  another  Church,  and 
of  their  consequent  withdrawal. 

7.  By  "  orthodox  "  or  evangelical  Churches  are 


Sec.  1.]  MEMBERS.  25 

meant  those  whose  doctrinal  creed  embraces, 
especially,  the  divinity  and  atonement  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the  depravity  of  the  human 
heart,  justification  by  faith  alone,  regenera- 
tion by  the  Holy  Ghost,  the  witness  of  the 
Spirit,  and  future  rewards  and  punishments, 
and  whose  communicants  generally  are  reputed 
co  be  devout  and  Christian  men. 

8.  The  following  law  decision  was  rendered 
by  the  General  Conference  of  1860  : 

"  1.  If  a  preacher  in  charge  of  any  work  re- 
ceive a  person  into  the  Church  contrary  to  the 
Discipline  can  the  Annual  Conference  correct 
the  adminstration,  and  declare  that  the  person, 
having  been  received  contrary  to  Discipline,  is 
therefore  not  a  member  ? 

"Answer.  No.  This  question  was  decided 
by  the  General  Conference  of  1852  by  the  adop- 
tion of  the  following  resolution  : 

"  Resolved,  That  when  an  Annual  Conference 
decides  that  a  preacher  having  charge  has  re- 
ceived or  expelled  a  member  contrary  to  the 
Discipline,  the  decision  does  not  exclude  the 
member  so  received,  but  restores  the  member 
BO  expelled.  (General  Conference  Journal, 
page  T3.)?'—  Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  p.  297. 

See  also  Appendix  to  Dis.of  1884,1 53 Y,  §§1,2. 


26  CHURCH   MEMBERSHIP.  [Chap.  1, 

SECTION  II. — Probationers. 

1.  IF  the  visible  Church  of  Christ  is  a  con- 
gregation of  faithful  men,  in  which  the  pure 
word  of  God  is  preached  and  the  sacraments 
duly  administered,  as  our  Articles  of  Religion 
teach,  it  is  a  matter  of  vital  importance  to  test, 
with  deep  scrutiny,  the  moral  and  Christian 
character  of  those  who  propose  to  enter  her 
holy  communion.  No  proselyte  was  admitted 
to  Jewish  fellowship  without  being  well  proved 
and  instructed.  The  same  care  was  observed 
by  the  early  Christian  Church.  "  None  in  those 
days,"  says  Lord  King,  "  were  hastily  advanced 
to  the  higher  forms  of  Christianity,  but,  accord- 
ing to  their  knowledge  and  merit,  gradually  ar- 
rived thereto."  Bishop  Stillingfleet  remarks 
that  one  principal  cause  "  of  the  great  flourish- 
ing of  religion  in  the  primitive  times  was  the 
strictness  used  by  them  in  their  admission  of 
members  "  into  Church  fellowship.  Origen,  in 
his  treatise  against  Celsus,  remarks  that  "  they 
did  inquire  into  the  lives  and  carriages  to  dis- 
cern their  seriousness  in  the  profession  of  Chris- 
tianity during  their  being  catechumens;"  and 
if  they  evinced  true  repentance  and  reformation 
of  life,  they  were  then  admitted  to  a  participa- 
tion of  the  mysteries. 


Sec.  II.]  PROBATIONERS.  27 

2.  It  is  the  prerogative  of  the  preacher  in 
charge  alone  to  receive  persons  on  trial.     No 
one  whose  name  is  taken  by  a  class-leader  can 
be  considered  as  a  member  on  trial  until  the 
preacher  recognizes  him  as  such. 

3.  The  only  condition  required  of  those  join- 
ing on  trial  is,  "a   desire  to  flee  from  the 
wrath  to  come,  and  to  be  saved  from  their 
sins."     (T   31.)     This  desire,  however,  must 
be   evinced   "by   doing   no    harm,   by  avoid- 
ing evil  of  every  kind,"  "  by   doing    good," 
"  by  instructing,   reproving,   or  exhorting  all 
they  have  any  intercourse  with,"  "  by  running 
with  patience  the  race  which  is  set  before  them, 
denying  themselves,  and  taking  up  their  cross 
daily,  submitting  to  bear  the  reproach  of  Christ, 
to  be  as  the  filth  and  offscouring  of  the  world, 
and  looking  that  men  should  say  all  manner  of 
evil  of  them  falsely,  for  the  Lord's  sake,"  and 
"  by  attending  upon  all  the  ordinances  of  God." 
As  the  minister  may  not  know  whether  the  can- 
didate makes  a  truthful  declaration  of  his  moral 
state,  he  is  directed  to  exercise  "  great  care  "  in 
"receiving  persons  on  trial,"  and  to  enroll  no 
one  unless  he  gives  evidence  of  "  earnest  desire 
to  be  saved  from  his  sins."     As  the  candidate 
is  not  supposed,  at  the  time  of  joining  on  trial, 
to  be  acquainted  with  our  doctrines,  usages,  and 


28  CHURCH    MEMBERSHIP.  [Chap.  I, 

discipline,  he  is  not  required,  at  that  time,  to 
subscribe  to  our  articles  of  religion  and  general 
economy  ;  but  if  he  proposes  to  join  in  full  con- 
nection, "  he  must  give  satisfactory  assurances 
both  of  the  correctness  of  his  faith  and  his 
willingness  to  observe  and  keep  the  rules  of  the 
Church."  (1~  48,  §  3.)  A  probationer  enters 
into  no  covenant  with  the  Church.  Every 
step  he  takes  is  preliminary  to  this,  and  either 
party  may,  at  any  time,  quietly  dissolve  the  re- 
lation between  them  without  rupture  or  spe- 
cific Church  labor. 

4.  The  Discipline  does  not  specify  the  time 
when  the  probation  shall  close,  but  it  has  fixed 
its  least  period.  "  Let  no  one  be  received  into 
full  membership  until  such  person  has  been  at 
least  six  months  on  trial."  (^[  48,  §  3.)  If  either 
party  desires  a  longer  probation,  a  judicious  ad- 
ministrator will  readily  allow  it.  A  Church  re- 
lation is  so  sacred  and  intimate  that  it  should 
not  be  formed  if  there  are  secret  misgivings  011 
either  party.  The  hand  of  fellowship,  when 
given,  should  be  hearty,  sincere,  and  deeply  af- 
fectionate. But,  when  both  parties  are  satis- 
fied, and  the  usual  period  of  probation  has  ex- 
pired, the  candidate  should  be  advised  to  con- 
summate his  full  connection  with  the  Church. 


Sec.  II.]  PROBATIONERS.  29 

as  a  duty  which  he  owes  to  the  great  Head  of 
the  Church  and  to  the  world. 

5.  A  member  on  trial  is  entitled  to  the  special 
watch-care  of  the  Church ;  he  has  a  right  to  at- 
tend its  general  religious  meetings,  its  class- 
meetings,  and  love- feasts. 

A  probationer  is  not  entitled  to  hold  any 
official  relation,  as  steward,  class-leader,  exhort- 
er,  or  local  preacher.  Where  a  new  society  has 
just  been  organized,  necessity  may  compel  the 
preacher  to  appoint  some  probationer  to  take 
charge  of  the  class,  but  such  an  appointment  does 
not  give  the  person  a  connection  with  the  quar- 
terly conference.  None  can  form  a  part  of  this 
important  judicatory  of  our  Church  who  has 
never  entered  into  covenant  with  us,  or  signified 
his  "  willingness  to  observe  and  keep  the  rules 
of  the  Church." 

Nor  is  it  the  order  of  the  Church  for  proba- 
tioners, who  have  never  been  baptized,  to  par- 
take of  the  holy  sacrament.  The  initiatory  rite 
should  first  be  administered  before  the  person  is 
admitted  to  all  the  distinguishing  rites  of  the 
new  covenant. 

G.  A  person  on  trial  cannot  be  arraigned  be- 
fore the  society,  or  a  select  number  of  them,  on 


30  CHURCH   MEMBERSHIP.  [Chap.  I, 

definite  charges  and  specifications.    "  If  he  walk 
disorderly,  he  is  passed  out  by  the  door  at  which 
lie  came  in.     The  pastor,  upon  the  evidence  and 
recommendation  required  in  the  Discipline,  en- 
tered his  name  as  a  candidate,  or  probationer, 
for  membership,  and  placed  him   in  a  class  for 
religious  training  and  improvement ;  now,  if  his 
conduct  be  contrary  to  the  Gospel,  or,  in  the 
language  of  our  rule,  if  he  '  walk  disorderly  and 
will  not  be  reproved,'  it  is  the  duty  of  the  pas- 
tor to  discontinue  him,  to  erase  his  name  from 
the  class-book  and  probationers'  list.     This  is 
not  to  be  done  rashly,  or  on  suspicion,  or  slight 
evidence  of  misconduct.     It  is  made  the  duty  of 
his  leader  to  report  weekly  to  his  pastor  '  any 
that  walk  disorderly  and  will  not  be  reproved.' 
This  implies  that  the  leader,  on  discovering  an 
impropriety  in  his  conduct,  first  conversed  pri- 
vately with  him,  and,  on  finding  that  he  had 
done  wrong,  attempted  to  administer  suitable 
reproof  that  he  might  be  recovered.     Had  he 
received  reproof,  this  had  been  the  end  of  the 
matter;    but  he   'would   not  be  reproved' — 
would  not  submit  to  reproof — and  the  leader 
therefore  reports  the  case  to  the  pastor.     But  it 
is  evidently  the  design  that  after  this  first  failure 
on  the  part  of  the  leader,  further  efforts  should 
be  made  by  the  pastor ;  for  the  rule,  after  pro- 


Sec.  III.]  PROBATIONERS.  31 

riding  that  such  conduct  shall  be  made  known 
to  the  pastor,  adds :  '  We  will  admonish  him 
of  the  error  of  his  ways.  We  will  bear  with 
him  for  a  season.  But,  then,  if  he  repent  not, 
he  hath  no  more  place  among  us.'  The  pas- 
tor, on  consultation  with  the  leader  and  others 
when  convenient  in  country  societies,  and  with 
the  leaders'  meeting,  where  there  is  one,  deter- 
mines on  the  proper  course,  and  carries  the 
determination  into  effect.  Here  is  a  just  cor- 
respondence between  rights  and  duties." — Plat. 
Meth.,  p.  87. 

SECTION  III. —  Withdrawal. 

1.  Church  relation,  from  the  nature  of  the 
case,  must  depend  upon  the  mutual  pleasure  of 
the  parties.  No  Church  covenant  ought  to  be 
construed  into  a  solemn  pledge  and  obligation 
to  remain  during  life  with  that  particular  branch 
of  the  Church  of  Christ  with  which  the  person 
first  unites.  It  may,  indeed,  be  deemed  a  sol- 
emn pledge  to  remain  in  fellowship  with  some 
branch  of  the  visible  Church.  Dissatisfaction 
with  the  doctrines  or  polity  of  a  Church,  after 
long  and  prayerful  examination,  may  be  a  suffi- 
cient reason  why  a  new  Church  relationship 
should  be  formed. 


32  CHURCH    MEMBERSHIP.  [Chap.  I. 

2.  As  Church  relationship  is  formed  to  pro- 
mote the  mutual  holiness  of  its  members,  and 
more  successfully  to  extend  Christianity  through 
the  world,  the  Church  can  never  be  a  party  to 
the  removal  of   a  member  so  long  as  he  dis- 
charges faithfully   his   covenant   vows.     As  it 
was  voluntary  for  the  person  to  enter  this  rela- 
tion, so  it  is   optional   with   him    to  withdraw 
from   this  connection  whenever  he  is  disposed, 
provided  he  has  faithfully  discharged  his  obli- 
gations.   But  if  he  determines  to  withdraw,  *'  he 
shall  communicate  his  purpose  to  the  preacher  in 
charge.1'     The  Church  may  labor  to  show  him 
the  folly  and  indiscretion  -of  the  act,  but,  if  he 
persists  in  his  determination,  the  Church  must 
give  her  consent ;  but  the  acquiescence  of  the 
Church  is  not  to  be  deemed  as  an  assumption 
of  a  part  of  the  responsibility  of  the  act. 

3.  When    a   Church    relation    is  formed,  the 
member,  virtually,  promises  to  observe  the  rules 
and  usages  of   the  society,  and   if  he  violates 
them,  to  submit  to  the  discipline  of  the  Church. 
And  hence  none  can  claim  a  withdrawal  from 
the  Church   against  whom    charges  have  been 
preferred,  or  until  the  Church  has  had  an  oppor- 
tunity to  recognize  the  withdrawal.     A  solemn 
covenant  cannot  be  dissolved  until  the  parties 


Rec.  III.]  WITHDRAWAL.  33 

arc  duly  notified.  The  bishops  have  unani- 
mously declared  that  "  the  admission  of  the 
right  to  withdraw  at  option,  without  the  con- 
sent of  the  Church,  especially  when  under  im- 
putation of  gross  and  scandalous  offences,  would 
operate  most  injuriously  to  the  maintenance  of 
wholesome  discipline  and  sound  morals.  In 
accordance  with  this  view,  we  deem  it  to  be 
our  duty  to  say  that  it  is  contrary  to  the  econo- 
my and  usage  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  to  allow  ministers  or  members,  when 
guilty  of  gross  violations  of  the  Discipline,  to 
evade  its  salutary  authority  and  force  by  de- 
claring themselves  withdrawn  from  the  juris- 
diction of  the  Church."  (1848.) 

4.  But,  though  no  accused  member  can  claim 
the  right  to  withdraw,  yet  the  body  to  which  he 
is  responsible  may  "  suffer"  an  accused  member 
"to  withdraw  from  the  Church,  should  he  re- 
quest it,  before  the  trial  takes  place."  '*  For 
scandalous  crimes,"  says  Bishop  Hedding,  "  ex- 
pulsion should  undoubtedly  take  place,"  and  if 
the  authorities  of  the  Church  should  proceed 
and  expel  a  member  who  had  violated  his 
Church  covenant,  and  declared  himself  beyond 
the  pale  of  the  Church,  they  would  be  protected 
by  the  civil  law,  provided  their  action  was  in 


34  nHCKCH   MEMBERSHIP.  [Chap.  1, 

accordance  with  the  rules  of  the  Church.  The 
Church  must  decide  when  her  purity  and  in- 
fluence demand  the  expulsion  of  disorderly 
members  from  her  communion.  (Gen.  Conf. 
Jour.,  1848,  p.  129.) 

5.  When   several   members   of  our   Church 
withdraw  in  a  body  from  our  public  and  social 
meetings,  and  the  oversight  of  the  pastor,  and 
appoint  separate  meetings  for  themselves,  they 
are  not  to  be  considered  as  withdrawn  from  the 
Church,  but  they  may  be  summoned,  each  sep- 
arately, to  answer  for  neglect  of  duty  and  diso- 
bedience  to  the  order  of  the   Church.     "  No 
member  of  our  Church  can  be  pronounced  with- 
drawn   from   the  Church   without  at  least  his 
verbal  consent,  so  as  to  preclude  the  member 
from  Church  privileges,  or  the  right  of  trial  if 
he  desires  it."— Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1860,  p.  428. 

6.  If  a  member  makes  an  application  to  with- 
draw, and  after  a  few  days  expresses  a  desire 
to  remain  in  the  Church,  if  the  withdrawal  has 
not  been  announced,  and    no   entry  has  been 
made  on  the  Church  books,  it  is  optional  with 
the  Church  either  to  declare  him  withdrawn,  or 
to  allow  him  to  recall  his  request.     But  if  the 
withdrawal  has  been  consummated  bv  the  as- 


See.  JIL]  WITHDRAWAL.  35 

sent  of  the  Church,  and  the  registry  of  the  fact, 
it  cannot  be  annulled  by  Church  action.  (Bp. 
Janes.) 

7.  A  member  who  refuses  to  attend  to  hi?, 
duties,  to  meet  in  class,  etc.,  does  not  by  that  act 
withdraw  from  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 
But  such  member  is  responsible  to  the  Church 
for  such  violation  of  his  Church  covenant. 

8.  When  a  minister  desires  to  withdraw  from 
the  Methodist   Episcopal    Church,  his   request 
must  be  presented  to  the  body  to  which  he  is 
responsible.     When   a  superannuated  preacher 
resides  beyond  the  bounds  of  his  Annual  Con- 
ference, a  presiding  elder  cannot  give   him  a 
certificate   of  withdrawal.    (Gen.   Conf.  Jour., 
1864,  p.  141.) 


36  THE   CONFERENCES.  .  jChap.  IL 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  CONFERENCES. 

SECTION  I. — Annual  Conference*. 

1.  The  first  Annual  Conference  in  England 
was  held  at  the  Foundry  in  London,  June,  1744, 
at  which  the  following  persons  were  present  :— 
John  Wesley,  Charles  Wesley,  John   Hodges, 
Rector  of  Wenvo,  Henry  Piers,  Vicar  of  Bex- 
ley,    Samuel    Taylor,   Vicar    of   Quinton,   and 
John  Meriton.    The  first  Annual  Conference  in 
America  was  held  in  Philadelphia,  June,  1773, 
at  which  the  Rev.  Thomas  Rankin  presided. 

2.  Districts  have  existed  not  in  name  but  in 
fact,  since  the  organization  of  our  Church.     Mr. 
Wesley  desired  that  "  no  more  elders  should  be 
ordained,  in  the  first  instance,  than  were  abso- 
lutely necessary,  and  that  the  work  on  the  con- 
tinent should   be  divided  between  them  in  re- 
spect to  the  duties  of  their  office."     The  Gen- 
eral   Conference,  at   first,  elected  only  twelve 
elders    to    administer    the    ordinances    of   the 
Church;   but  Bishop  Asbury  and  the  District 


Sec.  I.]  ANNUAL   CONFERENCES.  37 

Conferences  afterward  enlarged  the  number, 
and  gave  them  the  name  by  wliich  they  were 
afterward  designated.  This  proceeding  subse- 
quently received  the  approbation  of  Mr.  Wesley 
and  of  the  General  Conference  of  1792. 

3.  The  term  Circuit  was  first  introduced  into 
the  Minutee  of  the  conference  in  the  year  1746. 
At  that  time  a  circuit  embraced  some  fifteen  or 
twenty  societies  which  lay  around  some  princi- 
pal society.  At  each  conference  two,  three,  o"r 
four  preachers  were  appointed  to  each  circuit, 
and  the  one  having  the  charge  was  denominated 
an  Assistant,  because  he  assisted  Mr.  Wesley 
in  superintending  the  societies,  and  the  other 
preachers  were  called  Helpers.  In  England  the 
name  Circuit  is  now  generally  retained,  and  ap- 
plied to  the  stations  of  the  preachers  whose 
spheres  of  ministerial  labor  do  not  extend  far 
beyond  the  limits  of  the  town  in  which  they 
reside,  as  well  as  to  those  which  spread  over  a 
much  larger  space.  In  this  country,  in  collo- 
quial language,  the  term  station  is  applied  to  a 
charge  embracing  only  a  single  worshipping  con- 
gregation, and  circuit  to  a  more  extended  field  ; 
but,  in  the  Discipline,  these  terms  are  frequently 
used  interchangeably.  When  a  society  becomes, 
in  common  parlance,  a  Station,  it  loses  no  title 


38  THE   CONFERENCES.  Chap.  II, 

to  funded  property  which  it  held  while  it  was 
called  a  Circuit,  nor  do  Circuit  Preachers  form 
a  different  class  of  beneficiaries  from  those  who 
are  termed  Stationed  Preachers. 

4.  A  Bishop  sustains  the  relation  of  Mode-* 
rotor  to  the  General  Conference.  He  repre- 
sents no  section  or  interest  of  the  Church  ;  he 
can  claim  no  right  to  introduce  motions,  to  make 
speeches,  or  to  cast  votes  on  any  question.  As 
president,  he  can  neither  form  rules  nor  decide 
law  questions  in  the  General  Conference;  and, 
on  mere  questions  of  order,  there  is  an  appeal 
from  his  decision  to  the  deliberative  body.  (Bish- 
ops' Address  to  Gen.  Conf.,  1840;  Bishop  Hed- 
ding  on  Discipline,  p.  10.) 

No  one  of  the  bishops  is  specially  designated 
as  the  president  of  the  General  Conference. 
The  order  of  presiding  is  a  matter  of  mutual 
agreement  among  the  bishops.  He  who  occu- 
pies the  chair  for  the  time  being  is  the  legal 
president  of  the  conference. 

By  a  conventional  arrangement  among  the 
bishops,  there  is  properly  but  one  official  presi- 
dent of  an  annual  conference,  though  other 
bishops  may  preside  and  assist  in  all  the  duties 
of  the  chair.  No  bishop  has  a  right  to 
make  a  motion,  to  vote,  or  to  make  speeches 


"Sec.-.  I,J  ANNUAL    CONFERENCES.  39 

on      controverted     questions     in     an     annual 
conference. 

5.  The  peculiar  prerogatives  of  the  president 
of  an  annual  conference  are  the  following: 

a.  He  may  adjourn  the  conference  over  which 
he  presides  when,  in  his  judgment,  all  the  busi- 
ness  prescribed    by  the   Discipline  shall  have 
been   transacted,  provided  that  the  conference 
shall  be  allowed  to  sit,  at  least,  a  week,  and 
.Uso   provided,  that    if  an   exception   shall   be 
taken,  by  the  conference,  to  his  so  adjourning 
it,  the   exception   shall    be   entered    upon    the 
journals  of  the  conference.  (Gen.  Conf.  Jour., 
1840,  p.  121.) 

b.  The  bishop  must  decide  all  questions  of 
law   involved    in    proceedings   pending    in   an 
annual   conference,    and    all   questions   of    or- 
der raised  in  the  ordinary  business  of  the  con- 
ference.    On  a  question  of  law,  an  appeal  may 
he  taken,  either  by  the  conference  as  a  body,  or 
by  any  member  of  it,  to  the  next  ensuing  Gen- 
eral Conference.    The  decision  of  the  president, 
however,  must  be  made  the  basis  of  action,  for 
the  time  being,  by  the  conference.     On  a  ques- 
tion of  order,  an  appeal  may  be  taken  at  the 
time  to  the  annual  conference. 

c.  The  president  of  an  annual,  a  district,  o1 


40  THE   CONFERENCES.  [Chap.  II, 

a  quarterly  conference  lias  the  right  to  de- 
cline putting  the  question  on  a  motion,  resolu- 
tion, or  report,  when,  in  his  judgment,  such 
motion,  resolution,  or  report  does  not  relate  to 
the  proper  business  of  the  conference.  Pro- 
vided, that  in  all  such  cases,  the  president,  on 
being  required  to  do  so,  shall  have  inserted  in 
the  journals  of  the  conference  his  refusal  to 
put  the  question  on  such  motion,  resolution,  or 
report,  with  his  reasons  for  so  refusing;  and 
also  provided,  that  when  an  annual  conference 
shall  differ  from  the  president  on  a  question  of 
law,  it  shall  have  a  right  to  record  its  dissent  oir 
the  journals,  provided  there  shall  be  no  dis- 
cussion on  the  subject.  (Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  ISiO, 
p.  121.) 

d.  The  following  decisions  were  made  by  the 
General  Conference  of  186.0  : 

"  1.  If  a  motion  is  made  in  an  annual  or  quar- 
terly conference,  which,  if  passed,  would  be  a 
positive  violation  of  Discipline,  should  the  pres- 
ident put  the  motion  and  allow  the  Discipline 
to  be  set  aside,  or  what  should  Tu  do  ? 

"  Ans.  He  should  refuse  to  put  the  motion. 

"  The  president  of  an  annual  or  a  quarterly 
meeting  Conference  has  the  rio;ht  to  decline 

O  " 

putting  the  question  on  a  motion,  resolution,  or 
report,  when,  in  his  judgment,  such  motion, 


Sec.  I.]  ANNUAL   CONVERENCES.  41 

resolution,  or  report  does  not  relate  to  the  proper 
business  of  the  conference."  (Gen.  Con/.  Jour., 
1840,  p.  121.) 

This  decision  was  made  before  the  law  for 
district  conferences  was  enacted,  but  by  parity 
of  reason  the  rule  also  applies  to  the  president 
of  a  district  conference. 

u  2.  When  a  bishop  presiding  in  an  annual 
conference  decides  a  question  of  law  by  request 
of  the  conference,  if  a  motion  is  made  which 
would  reverse  the  decision  of  the  bishop,  under 
the  plea  that  the  conference  has  the  right  to 
apply  the  law  in  the  case,  should  the  motion  be 
put,  and  the  conference  be  allowed  to  set 
aside  the  law  under  the  pretense  of  applying 
it? 

"  Ans.  No.  When  a  question  of  law  has 
been  decided  by  a  bishop  in  an  annual  confer- 
ence that  decision  cannot  be  reversed  or  set 
aside  except  by  the  action  of  the  ensuing  Gen- 
eral Conference,  to  which  body  an  appeal  may 
be  taken  by  the  annual  conference  or  by  any 
member  thereof." — Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1860, 
p.  297. 

6.  No  preacher  having  the  charge  oi  a  circuit, 
is  authorized  to  divide,  or  in  any  way  to  lessen, 
the  circuit.  (Gen.  Conf.,  1816.) 


*2  THE   CONFERENCES.  [Chap   II, 

7.  Tu  regard  to  episcopal  decisions,  the  Gen- 
eral Conference  lias  adopted  the  following  sen- 
timents : 

"  Whereas,  under  the  rule  which  says,  'A 
bishop  shall  decide  all  questions  of  law  in  an 
annual  conference,  subject  to  an  appeal  to  the 
General  Conference,'  a  custom  has  grown  up  of 
evoking  episcopal  decisions  touching  the  admin- 
istration of  the  Discipline  outside  of  the  annual 
conferences;  and, 

"  Whereas,  the  opinions  of  the  bishops,  given 
in  writing  in  the  intervals  of  the  annual  confer- 
ences, are  sometimes  regarded  as  decisions  of 
law,  binding  in  the  administration  of  Discipline  ; 
and, 

"  Whereas,  these  decisions  and  opinions  are 
sometimes  in  conflict  with  each  other,  springing 
up  from  questions  growing  out  of  peculiar  and 
ever-varying  circumstances ;  and, 

"  Whereas,  it  is  the  judgment  of  this  Confer- 
ence that  the  use  made  of  the  rule  aforesaid  was 
not  intended  by  the  General  Conference  which 
established  it,  that  General  Conference  intend- 
ing it  for  the  administration  of  the  conferences, 
and  not  of  the  individual  pastors  ;  therefore, 

"1.  Resolved,  That  every  administrator  of 
the  Discipline  is  responsible  to  the  proper  au- 
thorities for  his  administration  of  tlie  rules  of 


Sec.  I.J  ANNUAL  CONFERENCES.  43 

the  Church,  and  may  not  plead  episcopal  de- 
cisions as  law. 

"  2.  Resolved.  That  while  the  counsels  of  our 
superintendents  are  to  be  highly  respected,  and 
to  be  considered  of  great  value  in  the  adminis- 
tration of  Discipline,  their  decisions  are  not  to 
b.e  regarded  as  having  the  force  of  law  outside 
of  the  annual  conferences." — Gen,  Conf.  Jour., 
1860,  p.  428. 

"  That  we  deem  it  inexpedient  for  a  Bishop 
presiding  at  an  annual  conference  to  render 
formal  decisions  of  questions  of  law  presented 
on  fictitious  cases,  and  where  the  subject  is  not 
involved  in  the  proceedings  pending,  nor  should 
any  such  decisions  be  entered  upon  the  confer- 
ence journals." — Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1868. 

8.  The  conference  year  commences  when  the 
appointments  are  announced  in  the  annual  con- 
ference, and  continues  until  the  announcing  of 
the  appointments  at  the  next  ensuing  confer- 
ence. (Bishop  Waugh.) 

9.  The  General  Conference  of  1860  has  given 
the  following  instructions  in  regard  to  special 
transfers  : 

"  1.  Resolved,  That  while  we  cheerfully  ac- 
cord to  our  excellent  superintendents  their  con- 


44  THE   CONFERENCES.  [Chap.  II, 

etitutional  right  to  supply  the  general  work  by 
transfers  when  necessary,  we  respectfully  request 
that  transfers  may  never  be  made  solely  at  the 
personal  solicitation  of  the  preacher  desiring  to 
be  transferred,  nor  yet  to  gratify  the  wishes  of 
any  one  charge  between  whom  and  the  proposed 
appointee  negotiations  may  have  been  previously 
made. 

'•  2.  Hesotoed,  That  negotiations  for  special 
appointments  in  the  pastoral  work  between  in- 
dividual ministers  and  societies,  prior  to  the 
exercise  of  the  regular  appointing  power  in  our 
Church,  is  contrary  to  our  economy  and  inju- 
rious to  our  itinerant  system." — Gen.  Conf. 
Jour.,  1860,  p.  398. 

10.  All  the  preachers,  whether  in  full  con- 
nection or  on  probation,  are  required  to  be 
present  at  the  annual  conference  and  undergo 
the  required  examinations.  If  a  local  deacon 
or  elder,  or  if  a  minister  from  another  evangel- 
ical denomination,  join  the  traveling  connection, 
lie  is  required  to  pass  the  four  years'  course  of 
study. 


11.  "  Can   a  traveling  preacher,  during  the 
interval  of  the  annual  conference  of  which  he 


Sec.  L]  ANNUAL  CONFERENCES.  45 

is  a  member,  be  suspended  for  refusing  to  at- 
tend to  the  work  assigned  him  ? 

" Ans.  It  is  the  duty  of  a  presiding  elder 
'  to  take  charge  of  all  the  elders  and  deacons  in 
his  district,'  and  to  'take  care  that  every  part 
of  our  Discipline  be  enforced.'  Now  our  Dis- 
cipline provides  (VIT  176,  182)  that  no  elder  or 
deacon  •  who  ceases  to  travel  without  the  con- 
sent of  the  annual  conference,  certified  under 
the  hand  of  the  president  of  the  conference,  ex- 
cept in  case  of  sickness,  debility,  or  other  un- 
avoidable circumstances,  shall  on  any  account 
exercise  the  peculiar  functions  of  his  office,  or 
even  be  allowed  to  preach  among  us.'  Hence, 
any  elder  or  deacon  who  refuses  to  go  to  the 
work  assigned  him  ('  except  in  cases  of  sick- 
ness,' etc.)  may  be  suspended  '  in  the  interval 
of  the  annual  conference  ; '  but  the  'final  deter- 
mination in  all  such  cases  is  with '  the  confer- 
ence."— Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  I860,  p.  297. 

12.  The  General  Conference  ordered  that  in 
receiving  preachers  into  full  connection  the  ex- 
amination of  the  candidates  before  the  CDnfer- 
ence  shall  precede  the  action  of  conference  in 
admitting  them  to  full  connection  and  elect- 
ing them  to  orders.  (Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  p. 
224.) 


46  THE   CONFERENCES.  [Chap.  H 

13.  When  a  member  of  an  annual  conference 
in  good  standing,  demands  a  location,  the  con- 
ference  is  obliged  to  grant  it  to  him.     But  if 
the  member  is  indebted  to  the  Book  Concern, 
the  conference  may  require  him  to  secure  the 
debt  before  they  grant  his  request.  (Rec.  Gen. 
Conf.,  1840,  p.  107.    Also  1  365,  Dis.,  1884.) 

14.  The  location  of  a  traveling  preacher  is  to 
be  reckoned  from  the  final  adjournment  of  the 
conference  session,  and  not  from  the  particular 
time  that  the  vote  of  location  is  taken. 

15.  A  located  preacher  is  entitled  to  a  certifi- 
cate of  location  under  the  hand  of  the  president 
of  the  conference.  (Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1848,  p.  98.) 

16.  A  preacher  who  has  been  located,  either 
with  or  without  his  consent,  may,  at  any  session. 
be  readmitted  to  his  former  standing,  at  the 
option  of  a  majority  of  the  conference. 

17.  But  if  a  preacher  has  withdrawn  from  an 
annual  conference,  he  cannot  again  be  read 
mitted  without  the  usual  probation,  though  ho 
has  returned  to  the  Church,  and  his  credential 
have  been  restored  ta  him. 


Sec.  I.]  ANNUAL   CONFERENCES.  41 

18.  Properly  accredited   ministers  from  a'ny 
branch  of  the  Methodist  Church,  or  from  any 
Church  agreeing  with  us  in  doctrine,  may  on 
their  credentials  be  at  once  received  into  full 
connection  in  the  traveling  ministry,  provided 
they  give  satisfaction  to  an  annual  conference 
of  their  literary  qualifications  and  of  their  will- 
ingness to  conform  to  our  Church  government 
and  usages.  (Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1864,  pp.  240, 
241,  417.) 

19.  Ministers  from  other  evangelical  Churches 
must  be  recommended  by  some  quarterly  con- 
ference, according   to  our  usages,  before  they 
can  be  received  on  trial  in  the  traveling  con- 
nection. 

20.  A  superannuated  preacher  possesses   all 
the  rights,  powers,  and  prerogatives  of  an  ef- 
fective preacher  in  an  annual  conference.     He 
may  serve  on  any  committee,  vote  on  any  ques- 
tion, and  represent  an  annual  conference  as  a 
delegate    in    the    General   Conference.     And 
whether  he  resides  within  or  without  the  bounds 
of  the  conference  of  which  he  is  a  member,  lie 
is  entitled  to  a  seat  in  the  quarterly  confer- 
ence, and  to  all  the  privileges  of  membership  in 
the  Church  where  he  resides. 

21.  A  preacher  on  trial  cannot  sustain  a  su- 
perannuated relation. 


4:8  THE   CONFERENCES.  [Chap.  II, 

2*2.  A  bishop  is  not  authorized  to  continue  a 
preacher  in  a  circuit  or  station  where  he  has 
held  a  pastoral  relation  over  a  majority  of  the 
charge  for  three  consecutive  years,  even  though 
the  station  may  be  divided  into  two  or  more 
circuits  or  stations.  (Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1836, 
p.  473.)  "  Nevertheless,  if  in  any  case  the  term 
of  three  years  shall  expire  in  the  interim  of  an 
annual  conference,  he  may  continue  him  until 
the  next  session,  provided  the  time. shall  not  be 
more  than  six  months."(  Discip.  1884,  T  164,  §  3.) 

23.  Every  preacher  belonging  to  the  travel- 
ing connection,  unless  he  sustains  a  superannu- 
ated or  supernumerary  relation,  or  at  the    re- 
quest of  his  Conference  has  been  permitted  to 
attend  school,  or  is  under  arrest  of  character, 
must  receive  an  appointment  to  some   station 
recognized  by    our    economy.     Previously    to 
1836  preachers  were  frequently  returned  on  the 
Minutes  as  being  left  without  an  appointment  at 
their  own  request  ;  but  the  General  Conference 
has  forbidden  the  practice,  except  in  the  case 
of  supernumerary  preachers. 

24.  Preachers  on  trial  who  have  been   em- 
ployed "  two  successive  years   in    the  regular 
itinerant  work  on  circuits,  in  stations,  or  in  our 
institutions  of  learning,"  and  have  satisfactorily 
passed  the  prescribed  examinations,  are  eligible 


See.  I.]  ANNUAL    CONFERENCES.  49 

to  admission  into  full  connection.     (Dis.  1884, 
T  158.) 

25.  While  a  preacher  is  on  trial  the  annual 
conference  alone  has  jurisdiction  over  the  ques- 
tion of  his  authority  to  preach,  and  his  continu- 
ance on  trial  is  equivalent  to  a  renewal  of  his 
license  to  preach,  (Discipline,  ^[  154;)  but  if 
accused  of  crime,  he  is  accountable  to  the  quar- 
terly conference  of  the  circuit,  or  to  the  district 
conference  within  whose  bounds  his  charge  is 
embraced.     (Dis.  1884,  f  223.) 

26.  When  an  annual  conference  requests    a 
superintendent  to  appoint  a  preacher  to  a  lit- 
erary institution,  it  does  not  render  it  obligatory 
upon  the  bishop  to  comply  with  the  request. 
(Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1840,  p.  165.) 

"  27.  When  a  preacher  is  transferred  from 
one  conference  to  another  his  rights,  privileges, 
and  responsibilities  in  the  conference  to  which 
he  is  transferred  shall  date  from  the  date  of  his 
transfer,  unless  it  be  especially  provided  other- 
wise by  the  bishop  by  whom  the  transfer  is 
.made. 

"  But  it  will  not  be  lawful  for  him  to  vote 
twice  on  the  same  constitutional  question,  01  be 
counted  twice  in  the  same  year  as  the  basis  of 
the  election  of  delegates  to  the  General  Confer- 
ence, nor  vote  for  delegates  to  the  General 
4 


50  THE   CONFERENCES.  [Chap.  II, 

Conference  in  any  conference  where  lie  is  not 
counted  as  a  part  of  the  basis  of  representa- 
tion."— (rt-n.  Conf.Jbur.,  1860,  p.  364;  see  also 
t  541,  Discipline  of  1884. 

SECTION  II. — District  Conferences. 

1.  District   conferences  are  to  be  held    in 
those  districts,  and  in  those  only,  in  which  the 
quarterly  conferences  of  a  majority  of  the  cir- 
cuits and  stations  shall  have  approved  the  law 
creating  district  conferences;  which  approval 
must  be  expressed  by  asking  the  presiding  elder 
to  convene  a  district  conference  according  to 
the  provisions  of  the  law.     After  such  approval 
it  becomes  the  duty  of  the  presiding  elder  to 
convene  a  district  conference,  and  thereafter  it 
will  not  be  lawful  for  any  quarterly  conference 
in  which  a  district  conference  shall  be  held  to 
exercise  any  of  the  powers  belonging  to   the 
district  conference.     (1  97  of  Dis.,  1884.) 

2.  District  conferences  are  composed   of  all 
the  traveling  and  local  preachers,  the  exhorters, 
the  district  stewards,  one  Sunday-school  super- 
intendent, and  one  class-leader  from  each  pas- 
toral charge  in  the  district.     If  there  shall  be 
two  or  more  superintendents  in  any  circuit  or 
station,  then  the  quarterly  conference  of  that 
circuit  or  station  shall  determine  which  super- 


Sec.  II.]  DISTRICT   CONFERENCES.  51 

intendent   and  which    class-leader  shall    be    a 
member  of  the  district  conference. 

3.  The  district  conference  meets  once  or  twice 
in  each  conference  year,  as  each  district  confer- 
ence shall  determine.     The  presiding  elder  ap- 
points both  the  time  and  place  for  the  meeting 
held  first  after  the  approval  of  the  law  in  any 
given  district ;  and  thereafter  he  appoints  the 
time,  and  the  district  conference  the  place,  of 
its  subsequent  meetings. 

4.  The  presiding  elder  is  the  president  of  the 
district  conference,  unless  a  bishop  be  present; 
but  in  the  absence  of  both  bishop  and  presiding 
elder,  the  conference  elects  its  own  president  by 
ballot  from  among  the  traveling  elders. 

5.  The  bishop  or  presiding  elder  must  decide 
all  questions  of  law.     An  appeal,  however,  may 
be  taken   from  such  decision  —  if  given  by  a 
bishop,  to   the  General  Conference ;  if  by  -an 
elder,  to  the  presiding  bishop  of  the  ensuing  an- 
nual conference. 

6.  The  district  conference  takes  cognizance 
of  all  the  local  preachers  and  exhorters  in  the 
district,  and  inquires  respecting  the  gifts,  labors, 
and  usefulness  of  each  by  name,  and  arranges 
at  each  meeting  a  plan  of  appointments  for  them 
until  the  next  meeting  of  the  conference.     The 
district  conference  also  hears  coir  plaints  against 


52  THE   CONFERENCES.  [Chap.  II, 

local  preachers,  and  tries,  suspends,  deprives  of 
ministerial  office  and  credentials,  expels  or  ac- 
quits, any  local  preacher  against  whom  charges 
may  be  preferred. 

7.  The  district  conference  has  authority  to 
license  local  preachers  and  exhorters,  to  annu- 
ally renew  their  licenses,  and  to  recommend  to 
the  annual  conference  local  preachers  as  suitable 
candidates  for  deacons  and  elders'  orders,  and 
for  admission  on  trial  in  the  traveling  connex- 
ion ;    but  the  district   conference   may  not  so 
license  or  recommend  any  person  without  the 
recommendation  of  the  quarterly  conference,  or 
of  the  leaders  and  stewards'  meeting  of  the  cir- 
cuit or  station  of  which  he  is  a  member.     And 
in  all  cases  the  candidate  must  pass  a  satisfac- 
tory examination    in   doctrine    and   discipline. 
The  district  conference  is  also  invested  with  the 
powers   given  to   the   quarterly  conference  in 
T^[  160,  161  of  the  Discipline,  relating  to  recog- 
nition of  orders. 

8.  It  is  the  duty  of  the  district  conference  to 
inquire  if  the  collections  for  the  benevolent  in- 
stitutions of  the  Church  are  properly  attended 
to  in,  all  the  circuits  and  stations,  and  to  adopt 
suitable  measures  for  promoting  their  success ; 
to  inquire  into  the  condition  of  the  Sunday- 
schools  in  the  district,  and  adopt  suitable  meas- 


Sec.  1I.J  DISTRICT   CONFERENCES.  53 

ures  for  insuring  their  success;  to  iuquire  re- 
ppecting  opportunities  for  missionary  and  Church 
extension  enterprises  within  the  district,  and  to 
take  measures  for  the  occupation  of  any  neg- 
lected portions  of  its  territories  by  mission 
Sunday-schools  and  appointments  for  public 
worship ;  to  provide  for  appropriate  religious 
and  literary  exercises  during  its  sessions;  and 
to  take  the  general  oversight  of  all  the  temporal 
and  spiritual  affairs  of  the  district,  subject  to 
the  provisions  of  the  Discipline. 

9.  The  minutes  of  a  district  conference  must 
be  read  and  approved  at  the  close  of  the  session. 

10.  A  district  conference  may  be  discontinued 
by  a  vote  of  two  thirds  of  the  members  present 
at  any  regular  session,  (notice  thereof  having 
been  given  at  a  previous  session,)  and  with  the 
concurrence  of  three  fourths  of  the  quarterly 
conferences  in  the  district. 

SECTION  III. —  Quarterly  Conferences. 

1.  It  is  uncertain  at  what  time  quarterly 
conferences  were  introduced  into  our  economy, 
but  it  is  known  that  they  were  held  at  a  very 
early  period.  The  Large  Minutes  were  first 
published  in  1763,  in  which  it  is  declared  to  be 
one  of  the  numerous  duties  of  the  assistant  to 
hold  quarterly  meetings,  and  diligently  inquire 


THE   CONFERENCES.  [Chap.  II, 

therein  into  the  spiritual  and  temporal  state  of 
each  society.  At  a  very  early  date  Mr.  Wesley 
adopted  the  plan  of  quarterly  visitations  of  the 
classes,  at  which  he  inquired  into  the  religious 
state  of  each  individual,  and  gave  suitable  pas- 
toral advice,  and  renewed  the  certificate  of 
membership  by  giving  each  a  society  ticket. 
The  visitations  were  so  arranged  as  to  terminate 
with  the  four  quarter  days  in  the  national  cal- 
endar ;  arid  the  quarterly  meetings  of  the  cir- 
cuits were  appointed  to  be  held  on  those  days, 
or  as  near  as  practicable. 

2.  The  powers  of  the  quarterly  conference 
are  various,  and,  as  detailed  in  this  section,  and 
as  set  forth  in  ^[1[  98-104  of  the  Discipline,  they 
are  powers  all  of  which  may  be  exercised  by  any 
quarterly  conference  which  does  not  belong  to  a 
district  within  which  a  district  conference  is  held 
in  pursuance  of  the  provision  of  the  Discipline 
in  the  premises.  Some  of  the  powers  hitherto 
belonging  to  quarterly  conferences  have  been 
transferred  from  the  quarterly  conferences  to 
the  district  conferences  in  cases  where  such  dis- 
trict conferences  are  held ;  and  the  powers  thus 
transferred  may  not  thenceforth  be  exercised 
by  the  quarterly  conferences.  In  all  other  cases 
the  powers  of  the  quarterly  conferences  remain 
as  heretofore  provided. 


Sec.  I II. J         QUARTERLY   CONFERENCES.  55 

3,  The  quarterly  conference,  where  no  district 
conference  is  held,  is  a  court  holding  original 
jurisdiction  over  accused  local  elders,  deacons, 
and  preachers,  and  of  preachers  on  trial  in  the 
traveling  connexion,  and  a  court  of  appeals  to 
the  laity.  It  is  a  council  to  constitute  and  ap- 
point local  preachers,  to  examine  their  moral 
and  Christian  characters,  to  renew  their  license 
annually,  and  to  recommend  suitable  persons 
for  ministerial  orders,  according  to  the  provisions 
of  the  Discipline.  It  is  also  intrusted  with  the 
election  of  the  stewards,  and  the  confirmation 
of  the  Sunday-school  superintendent,  and  the 
choice  of  the  superintendent  and  class-leader  to 
represent  the  conference  in  the  district  confer- 
ence. It  holds,  also,  a  supervisory  relation  tu 
the  various  financial  and  benevolent  enterprises 
of  the  Church.  It  is  authorized  "  to  hear  com- 
plaints "  against  the  official  acts  and  delinquen- 
cies of  local  preachers,  stewards,  and  exhorters, 
and  on  application  of  the  preacher  in  charge  it 
has  authority  to  order  a  new  trial  of  an  accused 
member.  It  may  also  elect  trustees  where  the 
laws  of  the  State  permit.  To  it.  also,  trustees 
are  to  make  an  annual  report.  (  See  Discipline, 
1  392.) 

4.  The  quarterly  conference  is  composed  of 
all  the  .traveling  and  local  preachers,  exhorters, 


56  THE   CONFERENCES.  [Chap.  II, 

stewards,  class-leaders,  and  trustees  of  the 
Churches  in  the  circuits  or  stations,  and  of  such 
members  of  the  annual  conference  as  the  bishop 
may  designate,  who,  as  agents,  editors,  etc., 
sustain  no  pastoral  relation  to  any  society,  and 
of  such  superannuated  preachers  as  reside  on  the 
circuit;  the  first  male  superintendents  of  our 
Sunday-schools,  said  superintendents  and  trust- 
ees being  members  of  our  Church,  and  approved 
by  the  quarterly  conference.  All  members  of 
a  quarterly  conference,  not  under  charges,  (nn- 
less  they  have  been  members  of  a  committee 
of  trial  from  whose  decision  an  appeal  is  taken,) 
have  equal  rights  to  speak  and  vote  in  such 
conference,  except  on  questions  affecting  their 
own  standing. 

5.  The  presiding  elder,  or  in  his  absence  a 
traveling   elder  appointed  by   him,    or   in  his 
absence  the  preacher  in  charge,  shall  preside  in 
the  quarterly  conference. 

6.  When  two  circuits  are  united  for  quarterly 
meetings,  the  secretary  of  the  quarterly  con- 
ference should  record  the  entire  doings  of  the 
conference,  and  the  recording  steward  of  each 
circuit  take  a  copy  of  such  records  only  as  relate 
to  his  respective  circuit. 

7.  The  quarterly  conference   is  authorized 
to  inquire  into  the  condition  of   each  school 


Sec.  III.]        QUARTERLY  CONFERENCES.  57 

or  society  within  the  bounds  of  the  circuit 
or  station,  and  to  remove  any  superintendent 
who  may  prove  to  be  unworthy  or  inefficient. 

8.  A  quarterly  conference  has  no  authority  to 
amend  or  reject  a  Sabbath-school  report  pre- 
sented by  the  preacher  in  charge,  according  to 
the  provisions  of  the  Discipline;  but  the  report 
should  be  entered  upon  the  journals  of  the  con- 
ference without  the  question  being  put  on  its 
adoption. 

9.  The  presiding  elder  must  appoint  the  time 
«»f  holding  a  quarterly  conference.     If  another 
person  appoints  it  without  his  knowledge,  it  is 
not  a  legal  session,  even  if  a  preacher  in  charge 
presides  in  it. 

10.  A  quarterly  conference  may  adjourn  from 
time  to  time  to  finish  any  pending  business; 
but  it  cannot  adjourn  to  a  distant  day  to  take 
up  new  business  which  would  properly  belong 
to  a  future  quarterly  conference.  (Iledding  on 
Disc.,  p.  36.) 

11.  The  president  of  a  quarterly  conference 
has  the  right  to  adjourn   the  conference  over 
which  he  presides  when  in  his  judgment  all  the 
business  prescribed    by  the  Discipline  to  such 
conference  shall  have  been  transacted.     But  if 
an  exception  be  taken  by  the  conference  to  his 
BO  adjourning  it,  the  exception  must  be  entered 


58  THE   CONFERENCES.  [Ohap.  II, 

upon  the   journals  of   the  conference.     (Gen. 
Conf.  Jour.,  1840,  p.  121.) 

12.  "All  ministers  having  charge  of  circuits 
or  stations   should  faithfully   enforce  the  pro- 
visions  of  the  Discipline   on    the    subject   of 
temperance,  and  every  presiding  elder  should 
make  it  a  subject  of  inquiry  in  every  quarterly 
conference." — General  Conference  Jour.,  1860, 
p.  395. 

13.  The  members  present  at  any  regularly 
called  quarterly  conference  constitute  a  legal 
quorum  for  the  transaction  of  business.     A  tic 
vote,  in    a   quarterly   conference,   decides    the 
question  in  the  negative,  as  the  presiding^  elder 
is  not  entitled  to  vote. 

14.  The  minutes   of  a  quarterly  conference 
must  be  read  and, approved  at  the  close  of  the 
session   when   they  are  taken :  they  cannot  be 
approved  at  any  subsequent  session.     The  unre- 
corded action  of  the  conference  is  of  no  legal 
authority. 

SECTION  IY. — Leaders  and  Stewards'  Meeting*. 

1.  Mr.  Wesley  gives  the  following  account  of 
the  origin  of  class-leaders  and  leaders'  meetings. 
Tie  had  long  been  perplexed  because  he  had  no 
means  of  learning  the  private  character  of  many 


sec.  iv.]  LEADERS'  MEETINGS.  59 

of  his  members.  "At  length,"  says  he,  "  while 
we  were  thinking  of  quite  another  thing,  we 
struck  upon  a  method  for  which  we  have  had 
cause  to  bless  God  ever  since.  I  was  talking 
jvith  several  of  the  society  in  Bristol  (Feb.  15, 
1742)  concerning  the  means  of  paying  the  debts 
there,  when  one  stood  up  and  said,  'Let  every 
member  of  the  society  give  a  penny  a  week  till 
all  are  paid.'  Another  answered.  '  But  many 
of  them  are  poor,  and  cannot  afford  to  do  it.' 
'  Then,'  said  he,  '  put  eleven  of  the  poorest  with 
.me,  and  if  they  can  give  anything,  well ;  I  will 
call  on  them  weekly ;  and  if  they  can  give 
nothing,,.!  will  give  for  them  as  well  as  for  my- 
self. And  each  of  you  call  on  eleven  of  your 
neighbors  weekly,  receive  what  they  give,  and 
make  up  what  is  wanting.'  It  was  done.  In  a 
while  some  of  them  informed  me  they  found 
such  and  such  a  one  did  not  live  as  he  ought. 
It  struck  me  immediately — '  This  is  the  thing, 
the  very  thing  we  have  wanted  so  long.'  I 
called  together  all  the  leaders  of  the  classes,  (so 
we  used  to  term  them  and  their  companies,) 
and  desired  that  each  would  make  particular 
inquiry  into  the  behavior  of  those  whom  he 
saw  weekly.  They  did  so.  Man}  disorderly 
walkers  were  detected.  Some  turned  from  the 
evil  of  their  ways ;  some  were  put  away  from 


GO  THE   CONFEKENCES.  [Chap.  II, 

us.  Many  saw  it  with  fears,  and  rejoiced  unto 
God  with  reverence.  As  soon  as  possible  the 
same  method  was  used  in  London  and  all  other 
places."  The  institution  ot  weekly  leaders' 
meetings  followed  of  course. 

2.  Leaders  and  stewards'  meetings,  from  their 
first  institution,  have    been    composed   of  tltc 
traveling  preachers  stationed   in  the  circuit  or 
station,  and  the  stewards  and  class-leaders  of 
the  charge.     The  Discipline  does  not  recognize 
the  office  of  assistant  class-leaders.     Though  a 
member  may  be  requested  to  aid  a  leader  in  the 
discharge  of  his  duties,  yet  this  relation  does  not 
entitle  him  to  a  seat  in  the  leaders'  meeting,  or 
in  the  quarterly  conference. 

3.  To  define  specifically  the  duties  and   pre- 
rogatives of  class-leaders  and  of  leaders'  meet- 
ings, Mr.  Wesley  published  the  following  rules 
in  17Y1 :  "  That  it  may  be  more  easily  discerned 
whether  the  members  of  our  societies  are  work- 
ing out  their  own  salvation,  they  are  divided 
into  little  companies  called  classes.    One  person 
in  each  of  these  is  styled  the  leader.     It  is  his 
business,  (1.)  To   see   each    person   in  his  class 
once  a  week ;  to  inquire  how  their  souls  pros- 
per ;  to  advise,  reprove,  comfort,  or  exhort  them. 


Sec.  iv.]  LEADERS'  MEETINGS.  61 

(2.)  To  receive  what  they  are  willing  to  give 
toward  the  expenses  of  the  society.  And,  (3.) 
To  meet  the  assistants  and  the  stewards  once  a 
week.  This  is  the  whole  and  sole  business  of  a 
leader  or  any  number  of  leaders.  But  it  i& 
common  for  the  assistant,  in  any  place  where 
several  leaders  are  met  together,  to  ask  their 
advice  as  to  any  thing  which  concerns  either 
the  temporal  or  spiritual  welfare  of  the  so- 
ciety." 

No  duties  are  so  specifically  assigned  to  the 
leaders'  meeting  as  to  require  their  being  held 
in  all  our  circuits  and  stations ;  yet  when  they 
are  held  monthly,  they  are  found  to  be  emi- 
nently adapted  to  promote  the  interests  of  the 
Church. 

The  ordinary  business  of  a  leaders  and  stew- 
ards' meeting  embraces  the  following  items, 
(Discipline,  1 105.) 

a.  That  the  leaders  have  an  opportunity  "  to 
inform  the  minister  of  any  that  are  sick,  or  of 
any  that  walk  disorderly  and  will  not  be  re- 
proved." 

1).  That  the  pastor  may  examine  the  several 
class-books,  and  ascertain  the  Christian  walk 
and  character  of  each  member  of  the  Church, 
and  learn  what  members  of  the  flock  especially 
need  his  watch-care  and  counsel. 


62  THE   CONFERENCES.  [Chap.  II, 

c.  To  inquire  into  the  religious  state  of  all 
persons  on  trial,  and  ascertain  who  can  be  rec- 
ommended by  the  leader  for  admission  into  full 
connection,  and  who  should  be  discontinued. 

d.  To  direct  the  leaders  to  such  a  course  of 
reading  and  study  as  shall  best  qualify  them 
for  their  work,  especially  to  such  books  as  will 
tend  to  increase  their  knowledge  of  the  Script- 
ures, and  make  them  familiar  with  those  pas- 
sages best  adapted  to  Christian  edification. 

e.  To  recommend  suitable  persons  to  be  li- 
censed as  exhorters  and  local  preachers. 

/.  That  the  leaders  may  "  pay  the  stewards 
what  they  have  received  of  their  several  classes 
in  the  week  preceding."  And  also  to  hear  re- 
ports from  the  stewards. 

4.  Class-leaders,  as  such,  are  responsible  only 
to  the  preacher  in  charge,  who  may  remove 
them  at  pleasure. 


Sec.  L]  BISHOPS.  63 

CHAPTER  III. 
MINISTERS. 
SECTION  I.  —  Bishops. 
1.  A  BISHOP  is  to  be  constituted  bj  the  elec- 


tion of  the  General  Conference,  and  the 

on  of  the  hands  of  three  bishops,  or  at  least  of 

one  bishop  and  two  elders. 

2.  The  duties  of  a  bishop  are  :  to  preside  in 
the  conferences,  to  form  the  districts  and  fix  the 
appointments  of  the  preachers,  to  change,  re- 
ceive, and  suspend  preachers,  to  ordain,  and  to 
decide  questions  of  law  in  annual  conferences, 
subject  to  appeal  to  the  General  Conference. 

SECTION  II.  —  Presiding  Elders. 

1.  The  office  of  presiding  elder  is  coeval  with 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  though  this 
officer  was  not  so  designated  until  1789,  and  its 
duties  were  not  specifically  defined  until  1792. 

2.  The  origin   and  nature  of  the  office  are 
thus  given  by  Dr.  Coke  and   Bishop  Asbury  : 
"  When  Mr.  Wesley  drew  up  a  plan  of  govern- 
ment for  our  Church  in  America,  he  desired 
that  no  more  elders  should  be  ordained,  in  the 
first  instance,  than   were  absolutely  necessary. 


64  MINISTERS.  [Chap.  III. 

The  General  Conference  accordingly  elected 
twelve  elders.  Bishop  Asbury  and  the  district 
conferences  afterward  found  that  this  order  of 
men  was  so  necessary  that  they  agreed  to  enlarge 
the  number,  and  give  them  the  name  by  which 
they  are  at  present  called,  and  which  is  perfectly 
scriptural,  though  it  is  not  the  word  used  in 
our  translation  :  and  this  proceeding  afterward 
received  the  approbation  of  Mr.  Wesley.  In 
1792  the  General  Conference,  equally  conscious 
of  the  necessity  of  having  such  an  office  among 
us,  not  only  confirmed  every  thing  that  Asbury 
and  the  district  conferences  had  done,  but  also 
drew  up,  or  agreed  to,  the  present  section  for  the 
explanation  of  the  nature  and  duties  of  the  of- 
fice."— Coke  and  A  sbury\s  Notes  on  the  Discipline. 

3.  The  presiding  elder  is  authorized  to  decide 
questions  of  law  in  a  quarterly  conference;  but 
an  appeal  may  be  taken  from  his  decision  to  the 
president  of  the  next  annual  conference.     If  the 
decision  of  the  president  of  the  conference  is 
not  satisfactory,  either  party  may  take  an  appeal 
from  this  decision  to  the  General  Conference. 

4.  A  presiding  elder  cannot  administer  dis- 
cipline in  any  society  where  there  is  a  regularly 
constituted  pastor.     If  there  is  no  preacher  in 
charge,  he  may  discharge  all  the  peculiar  duties 
of  the  pastorate. 


See.  I.J  PRESIDING   ELDERS.  65 

5.  A  presiding  elder  has  no  authority  to  per- 
mit a  traveling  preacher  to  leave  his  appropri- 
ate work.     If  a  preacher  leaves  his  charge,  the 
responsibility  rests  upon  himself  alone,  and  he 
must  answer  it  at  the  annual  conference.  (Gen. 
Conf.  Jour.,  1840,  p.  105.) 

6.  A  presiding  elder  may  remove  a  preacher 
from  his  charge,  in  the  interval  of  conference, 
and  assign  him  another  station  within  the  limits 
of  his  district ;  but  he  cannot  remove  him  be- 
yond the  bounds  of  his  district :  his  powers  are 
wholly  restricted  to  these  limits.     Nor  can  a 
presiding  elder  change  a  preacher  in  his  district 
from  a  charge  to  which  he  has  been  appointed 
by  the   bishop,  and   appoint   him    to    another 
charge  to  which  he  could  not  be  legally  ap- 
pointed by  the  bishop.  (Discipline,  ^  171,  §  3.) 

7.  When  superannuated  and  local  preachers 
are  employed  in  the  pastoral  work  by  a  presid- 
illg  elder,  the  law  of  limitation  of  time  applies 
to  them   as  to  effective  men   appointed  by  a 
bishop.  (Discipline,  T  171,  §  3.) 

8.  Presiding    elders   are    required   to  make 
quarterly  reports  of  the  state  of  the  missions 
within  their  bounds  to  the  Corresponding  Sec- 

5 


66  MINISTERS.  [Chap.  Ill, 

retary  of  the  Missionary  Society,  and  to  furnish 
the  member  of  the  General  Missionary  Commit- 
tee of  their  mission  district  a  written  statement 
of  the  condition  of  the  missions  under  their  care 
prior  to  the  annual  meeting  of  the  committee. 

9.  In  case  of  application  as  a  missionary  to 
preach  the  gospel  in  a  foreign  mission,  the  pre- 
siding elder  of  the  applicant  should  furnish  the 
bishop  having  the  authority  to  appoint  testimo- 
nials on  the  following  particulars  : — 

a.  Character  of  the  applicant's  piety. 

5.  Manner  and  effectiveness  of  his  preaching. 

c.  His  natural  talents  and   temper,  and  the 
probability  of  his  working  happily  with  others. 

d.  His  judgment,   discretion,    and    common 
sense. 

e.  The  extent  and  qualities  of  his  education. 
f.  His  habits  of  improving  time,  and  of  seiz- 
ing opportunities  of  usefulness. 

g.  The  habits  of  economy  of  himself  and  his 
family. 

A.  His  facility  of  acquiring  influence  ovci 
others. 

i.  His  aptness  in  acquiring  languages. 

j.  His  personal  appearance,  manners,  and  ad 
dress. 

k.  His  character,  habits,  health,  and  consh 


Sec.  I.]  PRESIDING    ELDERS.  67 

tution,  in  view  of  his  particular  fit'ld.  (Mission- 
ary Manual,  p.  7.) 


10.  Subjects  for  correspondence  of  superin- 
tendents, especially  with  reference  to   foreign 
missions  and  missions  among  the  Indians  : — 

a.  The  peculiar  customs  of  the  people  among 
whom  they  labor. 

6.  Their  language,  habits,  laws,  and  govern- 
ment. 

c.  Their  religious  views  and  worship. 

d.  The  degree  and  character  of  their  civili- 
zation. 

e.  Their  views  and  feelings  with  respect  to 
Christianity,  and  its  progress  among  them,  if 
they  have  made  any. 

f.  Account  of  particular  conversions  and  ex- 
periences. (Miss.  Manual,  p.  17.) 

11.  When  an  elder  is  appointed  or  elected 
president  of  an  annual  conference,  he  has  the 
same  prerogatives  as  to  presiding  in  conference, 
and  making  out  the  appointments,  as  a  bishop; 
but  such  appointment  confers  no  prerogative, 
except  those  specified  above,  and  these,  only 
during  the  session  of  the  conference. 


68  MINISTERS.  ("uliaP-  HI, 

SECTION  III.— Preacher  in  Charge. 

1.  A  preacher  in  charge  is  one  who  has  the 
pastoral  care  of  a  circuit  or  station,  by  the  ap- 
pointment of  the  regularly  constituted  authority 
of  the  Church.     He  may  be  an  elder,  a  deacon, 
an   unordained    preacher   on   trial,   or  a   local 
preacher  employed  by  the   presiding  elder  to 
supply  some  vacancy ;  all  appointed  by  compe- 
tent authority  possess  full  and  equal  powers  as 
preachers  in  charge. 

2.  The  duties  of  a  preacher  in  charge  are,  to 
take  the  oversight  of  the  junior  preachers  on 
his  circuit,  if  there  be  any  ;  to  renew  the  love- 
feast   tickets   quarterly ;    to   hold   watch-nights 
and  love-feasts ;  to  permit  no  love-feast  to  last 
longer  than  one  hour  and  a  half;  to  appoint 
prayer-meetings  wherever  it  is  practicable  ;  to 
appoint  a  fast  in  every  society  on  the  circuit  the 
Friday  preceding  each  quarterly  meeting,  and 
to  make  a  memorandum  of  it  on.  all  the  class- 
papers  ;  to  read  the  rules  of  the  society,  with 
the  aid  of  the  other  preachers,  once  a  year  in 
every  congregation,  and  once  a  quarter  in  every 
society;  to  enforce  vigorously,  but  calmly,  all 
the  rules  of  the  society  ;  to  take  a  regular  cata- 
logue ot  the  societies  in  towns  and  cities  as  thev 


Sec.  III.]  PREACHERS   IN   CHARGE.  09 

« 

live  in  the  streets ;  to  give  a  note  of  recom- 
mendation to  members  removing  from  the  cir- 
cuit, and  to  enjoin  upon  those  removing  to 
obtain  a  recommendation;  to  recommend  de- 
cency and  cleanliness  every-where ;  to  appoint 
a  person  to  receive  the  quarterly  collections  in 
the  classes;  to  encourage  the  support  of  mis- 
sions, by  forming  societies  and  making  collec- 
tions in  such  manner  as  the  annual  conference 
shall  direct ;  to  provide  for  the  diffusion  of  mis- 
sionary intelligence  in  the  Church  and  congrega- 
tion ;  to  institute  a  monthly  missionary  pra}rer- 
meeting  or  lecture  in  each  society  or  church  and 
congregation,  wherever  practicable,  and  to  ap- 
point, aided  by  the  Committee  on  Missions, 
missionary  collectors;  to  lay  before  the  quar- 
terly conference,  at  each  quarterly  meeting,  a 
written  statement  of  the  number  and  state  of 
the  Sunday-schools  in  the  circuit  or  station,  and 
to  report  the  same  to  the  annual  conference ;  to 
take  annual  collections  in  each  of  the  appoint- 
ments for  such  objects  as  are  directed  in  the 
Discipline ;  to  form  Sunday-schools  in  all  our 
congregations  where  ten  children  can  be  collected 
for  that  purpose ;  to  form  Bible  classes  ;  to  visit 
the  schools  as  often  as  practicable,  and  to  preach 
on  the  subject  of  Sunday-schools  and  religious 
instruction  in  each  congregation  at  least  once  in 


70  MINISTERS.  [Chap.  III. 

» 

six  months ;  to  take  up  a  collection  or  raise  a 
subscription  for  the  purchase  and  distribution 
of  tracts  ;  to  catechise  the  children  in  the  Sun- 
day-school and  at  special  meetings  appointed 
for  that  purpose ;  to  hold  quarterly  meetings  in 
the  absence  of  the  presiding  elder;  to  give  an 
account  of  his  circuit  every  quarter  to  his  pre- 
siding elder ;  to  report  at  each  quarterly  meet- 
ing the  names  of  those  who  have  been  received 
into  the  Church  or  excluded  therefrom  during 
the  quarter ;  also  the  names  of  those  who  have 
been  received  or  dismissed  by  certificate,  and 
of  those  who  have  died  or  have  withdrawn  from 
our  Church ;  to  license  proper  persons  to  offi- 
ciate as  exhorters  ;  to  submit  the  application  of 
all  who  desire  a  license  as  a  local  preacher  to 
the  society  or  leaders'  meeting  for  a  recom- 
mendation to  the  quarterly  conference ;  or  to 
the  quarterly  conference  for  recommendation  to 
the  district  conference  ;  to  give  a  certificate  of 
the  official  standing  of  a  local  preacher  when 
applied  to  in  case  of  removal ;  to  appoint  and 
change  leaders  when  he  sees  it  necessary  ;  to 
nominate  stewards  for  the  confirmation  of  the 
quarterly  conference  ;  to  meet  the  stewards  and 
leaders  frequently  ;  to  inspect  the  accounts  of 
the  stewards ;  to  recommend  arbitration  be- 
tween members  when  there  is  a  dispute  in 


Sec.  III.]  PREACHERS   IN   CHARGE.  71 

reference   to   pecuniary   affairs ;   to   appoint  a 
committee   to   inspect  the  accounts,  contracts, 
and  circumstances  of  those  members  who  fail  in 
business  or  contract  debts  which  they  are  not 
able  to  pay  ;  to  call  a  member  accused  of  non- 
payment of  debt  before  a  committee  for  investi- 
gation and  settlement;    to  bring   to   trial  and 
expel,  according  to  Discipline,  disorderly  mem- 
bers ;  to  call  local  preachers  who  have  failed  in 
business  before  a  committee ;  to  reprove  local 
preachers    guilty    of    indulging    in    improper 
tempers,  words,  or   actions,  and   to  call  those 
accused  of  crime  before  an  investigating  com- 
mittee; to  report  to  the  annual  conference  the 
number  of  Church  members,  number  of  deaths 
the  past  year,  number  of  probationers,  number 
of  local  preachers,  number  of  adults  baptized 
the    past    year,  number   of   children    baptized 
the   past  year,  number  of  churches  and   their 
probable  value,  number  of  parsonages  and  their 
probable  value,  amount  collected  for  superan- 
nuated preachers,  amount  collected  for  the  Mis- 
sionary Society,  amount  collected  for  Church 
Extension,  amount  collected   for  the  Sunday- 
School  Union,  number  of  officers  and  teachers, 
number  of    scholars,   number  of  volumes   in 
library  ;  to  recommend  to  every  class  or  society 
to  raise  a  quarterly  or  annual  subscription  to  meet 


72  MINISTERS.  [Chap.  Ill, 

the  current  expenses  of  preaching  the  Gospel  on 
the  circuit,  and  to  make  up  the  allowance  of 
the  preachers;  to  appoint  a  person  to  receive 
the  quarterly  collection  in  the  classes ;  to  take 
up  a  yearly  collection,  and,  if  expedient,  a  quar- 
terly one  to  make  up  the  deficiencies  at  the 
annual  conference ;  to  be  collectors  and  re- 
ceivers of  subscriptions,  etc.,  for  the  Chartered 
Fund ;  to  supply  the  societies  with  books  ;  to 
leave  his  successor  a  particular  account  of  the 
circuit,  including  an  account  of  the  subscribers 
for  our  periodicals ;  to  keep  in  a  suitable  book 
a  faithful  record  of  all  the  subscribers  to  our 
periodicals  in  his  charge ;  enter  the  date  and 
amount  of  payments,  and  leave  the  book  for 
his  successor,  and  a  note  of  the  place  where"  it 
is  left  on  the  plan  of  the  circuit ;  (see  Gen.  Conf. 
Jour.,  1840,  p.  117;)  to  appoint  a  board  of 
trustees  for  holding  Church  property  when 
necessary. 

3.  The  preacher  in  charge  who  is  a  member 
of  an  annual  conference,  and  a  preacher  on  trial, 
are  both  responsible  to  the  annual  conference 
for  their  administration  of  discipline  ;  and  a 
local  preacher  in  charge  of  a  society  is  respon- 
sible to  the  quarterly  conference. 


Sec.  1V.J  LOCAL   PREACIIEKS.  73 


SECTION  IY. — Local  Preachers. 

\.  No  one  can  be  licensed  as  a  local  preacher 
nntil  the  following  steps  have  been  taken  : — 

a.  tie  must  be  recommended  to  the  quarterly 
conference  by  the  leaders  and  stewards'  meeting, 
or  by  the  society  of  which  he  is  a  member.  It 
is  not  sufficient  that  he  be  recommended  by  the 
class  of  which  he  is  a  member.  If  the  applica- 
tion for  a  license  is  to  be  made  to  a  district 
conference,  he  must  be  recommended  by  the 
leaders  and  stewards'  meeting  or  by  the  quar- 
terly conference. 

5.  He  must  pass  a  satisfactory  examination  on 
the  subject  of  doctrines  and  discipline. 

2.  The  license  of  a  local  preacher  is  given  by 
the  quarterly  or  district  conference,  and  not  by 
the  presiding  elder  ;  and  hence  the  license  must 
be  signed  by  the  president  of  the  conference, 
even  if  he  is  the  person  thus  licensed. 

3.  A  quarterly  conference  may  refuse  to  re- 
new the  license  of  a  local  preacher  without  any 
impeachment  of  moral  character,  or  finding  any 
decrease  of  piety,  talent,  or  usefulness.    (Bishops 
Waugh  and  Janes.) 


T4:  MINISTERS.  [Chap.  III. 

4.  Every  license  is  given  for  one  year,  and  for 
one  year  only ;  and  hence,  in  the  interval  of  a 
conference   year,  a  license  cannot    be  revoked 
unless  the  quarterly  or   district   conference,  ill 
due  form,  for  cause  assigned,  deprive  the  local 
preacher  of  his  ministerial  office;  and  if,  at  the 
expiration  of  the  year,  no  conference  action  is 
taken   upon    it,  the  license  becomes   null   and 
void.     The  question  of  renewal  of  licenses  may 
be  laid  over   as   unHnished    business  until  the 
next  succeeding    quarterly  conference.     If  the 
license    of  a   local    preacher    has    expired,  the 
same  preliminary  steps  must  be  taken  to  regain 
it  as  if  no  license  had  ever  been  given.     The 
fact  that  the  proper  body  has  formerly  recom- 
mended a  person  for  local   preacher's  license, 
would  impose  no  obligation  upon  it  to  renew 
the  recommendation  if  the  question  were  again 
submitted  to  it.     If  a  district  or  quarterly  con- 
ference refuses  to  renew  the  license  of  a  local 
preacher,  a  subsequent  conference  cannot  recon- 
sider the  question  and  grant  a  renewal. 

5.  The  license  of  a  local  preacher  "  must  be 
renewed  annually"  by  the  district  or  quarterly 
conference  ;  but  by  this  expression  is  meant  that 
it  must  be  renewed  in  every  ecclesiastical  rath- 
er than  in  every  calendar  year.     If,  by  the  ar- 


Sec.  IV.]  LOCAL    PREACHERS.  75 

rangement  of  holding  quarterly  conferences,  the 
time  exceeds  by  a  few  weeks  the  calendar  year, 
it  does  not  render  void  the  license.  And  if  a 
local  preacher  should  change  his  residence,  and 
it  should  be  found  that  no  district  or  quarterly 
conference  will  be  held  for  a  short  time  after 
the  calendar  year  has  -expired,  the  license  will 
remain  in  full  force  until  the  question  of  renewal 
can  be  submitted. 

6.  An  ordained  local  preacher  is  not  required 
to  have  his  credentials  renewed  annually.     His 
ordination  parchments  authorize  him  to  preach 
until    they   are   surrendered,  or  made  void  by 
Church  action  or  a  violation  of  ordination  vows. 
But.  ordained   local    preachers  are  required  to 
pass  an  examination  in  the  quarterly  or  district 
conference  respecting  their   gifts,    labors,  and 
usefulness.     Usage  requires  that  this  examina- 
tion be  made  annually.     If  a  quarterly  or  dis- 
trict conference  refuses  to  pass  the  character  of 
a  local  elder  or  deacon  for  any  alleged  reason, 
the  administrator  should  proceed  to  an  investi- 
gation of  the  case,  according  to  disciplinary  rule. 

7.  No  local  preacher  can  be  employed  by  a 
presiding  elder  to  travel,  except  in  the  interval 
of  a  district  or  quarterly  conference,  without  a 


76  MINISTERS.  [Chap.  Ill, 

recommendation  of  such  district  or  quarterly 
conference.  This  recommendation  may  be  the 
usual  recommendation  to  an  annual  conference 
to  be  received  into  the  traveling  connexion,  or 
it  may  be  a  simple  recommendation  to  be  em- 
ployed, for  the  time  being,  on  a  circuit  or  station. 

8.  Every  local  preacher  is  amenable  to  the 
quarterly  conference  where  he  resides,  or  to  thy 
district  conference,  for  his  Christian  character 
and  the  faithful  performance  of  his  ministerial 
office;  and  to  it  he  shall  report  his  labors.  If 
he  'has  a  pastoral  charge,  he  must  hold  his 
Church  relation  in  that  charge.  (Discipline, 
T  193.)  When  a  preacher  is  located,  or  discon- 
tinued by  an  annual  conference,  he  is  amenable 
to  the  district  or  quarterly  conference  of  the 
circuit  where  he  had  his  last  appointment.  (Dis- 
cipline, ^[  190.)  A  preacher  on  trial  is  •'  amena- 
ble for  his  administration,  when  he  is  in  charge, 
to  his  presiding  elder  and  the  annual  conference. 
The  presiding  elder  can  correct  his  errors  and 
reprove  him,  and  change  his  relation  by  put- 
ting  him  under  another  preacher;  and  the  c»n- 
ferenee  can  discontinue  him  for  that  cause.''  — 
.  Hedding. 


9.  The  following  prerequisites  are  necessary 
for  the  ordination  of  a  local  preacher  : 


Sec.  IV.]  LOCAL   PREACHERS.  77 

a.  He  must  have  held  a  local  preacher's  li- 
cense for  four  consecutive  years  before  his  ordi- 
nation. 

£.  He  must  have  been  examined  on  the  subject 
of  doctrines  and  discipline. 

c.  He  must  have  received  a  "  testimonial  " 
from  the  quarterly  or  district  conference,  sighed 
by  the  president  and  countersigned  by  the  sec- 
retary.    This  testimonial  must  recommend  the 
applicant  as  a  suitable  person  to  receive  minis- 
terial orders. 

d.  lie  must  pass  an  examination  of  character 
before  the  annual  conference,  and  obtain  its  ap- 
probation and  election  to  orders. 

The  candidate  for  elder's  orders  must  either 
certify  his  belief  in  the  doctrines  and  discipline 
of  our  Church,  with  his  own  signature,  or  make 
this  profession  before  the  conference. 

10.  Wesleyan  local  preachers,  from  the  Brit- 
ish, Irish,  and  Canada  connections,  when  duly 
received  by  us,  are  eligible  to  deacon's  and  eld- 
er's orders  at  the  same  time  they  would  have 
been  if  they  had  received  their  first  license  from 
us  ;  but  this  rule  applies  to  none  who  come 
from  other  Christian  Churches. 

11.  The  recommendations  of  quarterly  or  dis- 
trict conferences  for  the  ordination  or  admission 


78  MINISTERS.  [Chap.  Ill, 

of  local  preachers  into  the  traveling  connection, 
on  trial,  are  not  valid  after  the  next  annual  ses- 
sion for  which  they  were  given. 

12.  The  presiding  elders  and  the  preachers  in 
charge  are  required  so  to  arrange  the  appoint- 
ments, whenever  it  is  practicable,  as  to  give  the 
local  preachers  regular  and  systematic  employ- 
ment on  the  Sabbath  ;  but  they  cannot  control 
the  appointments  of  local  preachers,  unless  they 
conflict  with  the  plan  of  the  circuit. 

13.  If  a  local  preacher  desires  to  withdraw 
from  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  his  re- 
quest should  be  presented  to  the  quarterly  or 
district  conference  to  which  he   is   amenable. 
The  preacher  in  charge  can  take  no  other  action 
in  the  premises  than  to  present  the  request  of 
the  local  preacher  to  the  quarterly  or  district 
conference. 

SECTION    Y. — Exhorters. 

1.  Exhorters  were  recognized  in  our  Church 
at  a  very  early  period.     Mr.  Wesley  permitted 
none  of  his  members  to  hold  religious  meetings 
without  a  special  note  from  the  assistant. 

2.  The  character  of  the  office  is  sufficiently 
indicated  by  the  name.     It  is  not  contemplated 


Sec.    V.J  EXHORTERri.  79 

that  an  exliorter  will  attempt  to  preach, — form- 
ally announce  a  text,  and  confine  himself  to 
the  elucidation  of  any  particular  passage  of 
Scripture, — but  that  he  will^  read  a  Scripture 
lesson,  and  make  a  practical  application  of  its 
general  sentiments  to  the  people.  This  office, 
when  faithfully  discharged,  may  be  rendered 
eminently  serviceable  in  promoting  the  interests 
of  the  Church. 

3.  It  was  required  by  the  conference  of  1779 
that  "  every  exhorter  and  local  preacher  should 
go  by  the  directions  of  the  assistants, — where, 
and    only   where,  they   snail   appoint."     They 
should  act  under  the  general  direction  of  the 
preacher  in  charge.     Exhorters  and  local  preach- 
ers should  co-operate  with  the  traveling  preachers 
in  carrying  out  the  general  plan  of  the  circuit ; 
and  should  not  hold  meetings  beyond  the  limits 
of  the  charge  which  recommended  their  license, 
unless  they  go  forth  to  break  up  new  ground,  or 
are  invited  to  another  charge  by  the  requisite 
authority  of  the  Church. 

4.  No  person  can  be  licensed  as  an  exhorter 
who  is  not  a  member  in  full  connection,  or  who 
has  not  been  first  recommended  by  the  leaders 
and  stewards'  meeting,  or  by  the  class  of  which 


80  MINISTERS.  [Chap.  Ill, 

lie  is  a  member  where  no  leaders'  meeting  is 
held. 

5.  All  licenses  to  exhort  are  primarily  given 
by  the  preacher  in   charge.     Every  exhorter, 
however,  is  subject  to  an  annual  examination 
of  character  in  the  district  or  quarterly  confer- 
ence ;  and  his  license  must  annually  be  renewed 
by  the  presiding  elder,  or  the  preacher  in  charge, 
if  approved  by  the  quarterly  conference. 

6.  Exhorters  are  responsible  for  their  official 
conduct  to  the  district  or  quarterly  conference  ; 
but  they  cannot  be  deprived   of  membership 
without  a  trial,  in  due  form,  before  a  committee 
of  the  society  of  which  they  are  members. 


Soe.  I.}         NOTE   OF   RECOMMENDATION.  81 


CHAPTER  IV. 

CERTIFICATES  AND  LOVE-F&ASTS. 
SECTION  I. — Note  of  Recommendation. 

~L.  EVERY  member  in  full  connection,  who  re 
moves  to  another  circuit  or  station,  is  entitled 
to  a  note  of  recommendation,  if  charges  are  not 
preferred  against  him. 

2.  If,  in  the  judgment  of  the  preacher   in 
charge,  there  are  sufficient  reasons  for  withhold- 
ing a  certificate,  and  the  member  is  willing  to 
be  tried,  the  preacher  is  guilty  of  maladminis- 
tration unless  lie  proceeds  in  the  trial  of  such 
person.  (Discipline,  1"  184,  §  6.) 

3.  No  preacher  is  under  obligation  to  give  a 
certificate  of  membership  to  any  member  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  unless  said  mem- 
ber wishes  to  remove  his  membership  to  another 
charge  in    the    Methodist   Episcopal   Church ; 
though,  as  a  matter  of  courtesy,  he  may  give  a 

recommendation  to  a  member  in  good  standing 
6 


82  CERTIFICATES.  [Chap.  IV, 

who  wishes  to  unite  with  another  evangelical 
denomination.  (Discipline,  ^[  184,  §  8.) 

4.  Where  pastoral  charges  are   contiguous, 
there  may  be  a  change  of  Church  relation  from 
the  one  to  the  other  without  a   change  of  resi- 
dence ;  but  if  the  member  removes  his  residence 
beyond  the  reach  of  his  privileges,  and  the  over- 
sight of  his  pastor  and  leader,  he  should  remove 
his  membership  by  certificate,  unless  he  has  no 
access  to  Church  privileges  convenient  to  his 
new  residence. 

5.  When  a  member  receives  a  certificate  of 
membership  from  a  preacher  having  charge  of 
a  circuit  or  station,  he  is  responsible  for  his 
moral  conduct,  from  the  date  of  his  certificate 
until  he  joins,  to  the  society  which  gave  him 
that   certificate.     But  in   accordance  with   the 
action  of  the  General  Conference  of   1884,  a 
certificate  of  membership  holds  good  for  only 
one  year,  unless  circumstances  shall  have  made  it 
impracticable  for  the  holder  to  present  it  within 
the  time   limit.     In  such  case,  the   certificate 
may  be  renewed  by  the  preacher  who  gave  it. 

6.  Certificates  of  removal  must  be  signed  by 
the    preacher  in   charge,   or   if    there    be   no 


Sec.  I.]          NOTE   OF    RECOMMENDATION.  83 

preacher  in  charge,  by  the  presiding  elder,  and 
shall  read  as  follows : 

"  Tnis  certifies  that  A.  B.,  the  bearer,  is  an  acceptable  member  of 

the Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in , 

and  is  affectionately  commended  to  the  fellowship  of  the  Meth- 
odist Episcopal    Church   in ,  or    in    any   other 

Church  to  which  he  may  present  this  certificate.     When  ad- 
mitted to  another  charge,  his  relation  to  this  charge  will  cease." 

7.  It  is  not  optional  with  the  preacher  whether 
he  will  receive  a  certificate  from  a  member  re- 
siding within  the  limits  of  his  charge,  if  pre- 
sented within  the  prescribed  time  limit.  If  the 
certificate  is  drawn  up  in  due  form,  and  signed 
by  the  constituted  authority,  it  must  be  honored, 
unless  it  is  known  that  the  person  presenting 
the  certificate  has  committed  crime,  in  which 
case  the  Church  issuing  the  certificate  should 
immediately  call  the  person  to  trial  in  due  form 
before  the  society,  or  a  select  number  of  them. 

The  General  Conference  of  1860  made  the 
following  decision : 

"  Is  a  preacher  in  charge  obliged  to  receive  a 
properly  authenticated  certificate  of  a  member 
when  he  is  aware  such  reception  would  disturb 
the  peace  and  quiet  of  the  Church  ? 

"  Ans.  It  is  the  duty  of  the  preacher  to  re- 
ceive all  such  certificates." — Gen.  Conf.  Jour., 
p.  298. 


84:         CERTIFICATES  ANTD  LOVE  FEASTS.   [Chap.  IV, 

In  those  extreme  special  cases  in  which  a 
preacher  refuses  to  receive  a  letter,  he  must 
justify  his  course,  if  complained  of,-  before  the 
annual  conference. 

8.  "When  a  member  is  expelled  from  the 
Church,  and  complaint  is  made  against  the  ad- 
ministrator to  his  annual  conference  for  malad- 
ministration, and  the  conference  decide  that  the 
person  was   expelled    contrary    to    Discipline, 
what  is  the  relation  of  the  member  expelled 
from  the  Church?    Does  the  act  of  the  annual 
conference  restore  the  character  of  the  member, 
so  that  the  charges  on  which  he  was  expelled 
are  so  annulled  that  the  preacher  may  legally 
give  him  a  letter  before  said  charges  are   dis- 
posed of  by  trial  or  withdrawn  ? 

"  Ans.  The  act  of  the  annual  conference  does 
not  restore  his  character,  but  simply  his  mem- 
bership ;  and  when  so  restored  he  is  placed  in 
the  position  which  he  occupied  before  he  was 
tried,  that  is,  he  is  an  accused  member,  and 
hence  the  preacher  is  not  at  liberty  to  give 
him  a  certificate  of  membership." — Gen.  Conf. 
Jour.,  I860,  p.  298. 

9.  Neither    a    class-leader,    nor    any    other 
Church  officer,  except  the  preacher  of  the  cir- 
cuit, can  properly   give  a  note  of   recommen- 
dation. 


Sec.  I.]  NOTE   OF   RECOMMENDATION.  85 

10.  Certificates  should  not  be  given  to  those 
who   withdraw  from  our  Church,  and  do  not 
intend    to    unite    with   any   other    evangelical 
Church. 

11.  Exhorters    who    change   their  residence 
should  receive  a  note  of  recommendation,  certi- 
fying their  official  relation  ;  and  the  presiding 
elder  having   the  oversight   of  the   charge   to 

*which  they  have  removed  may  direct  that  the 
names  of  such  exhorters  be  entered  upon  the 
records  of  the  district  or  quarterly  conference. 

12.  To  exercise  a  Christian  watch-care  over 
those  who  have  removed  among  strangers,  it  is 
made  the  duty  of  the  preacher  in  charge  when 
he  gives   a   letter  to  notify  the  pastor  within 
whose  bounds  the  persons  having  received  such 
certificate    shall    have    removed.     (Discipline, 
1"  184,  §  6.) 

SECTION  II. — Love-Feasts. 

1,  Love-feasts,  or  agapa),  were  instituted  in 
the  apostolic  age.  The  early  Christians  ate 
and  drank  together  to  signify  their  Christian 
love  for  each  other.  Before  receiving  their 
repast  they  washed  their  hands,  and  public 


86  LOVE-FEASTS.  [Chap   IV, 

prayers  were  offered.  The  services  were  con- 
ducted by  the  bishop,  or  presbyter.  A  portion 
of  the  sacred  writings  was  read,  and  questions 
were  proposed  by  the  presiding  officer  respect- 
ing the  lesson,  which  were  answered  by  the 
assembly.  Religious  intelligence  which  had 
been  received  from  other  Churches  was  recited, 
and  the  acts  of  the  martyrs,  and  letters  from 
bishops  and  other  eminent  members  of  the 
Church,  were  read.  Hymns  and  psalms  were 
sung,  and  a  collection  was  taken  for  the  widow 
and  the  orphan,  for  the  poor,  the  prisoner,  and 
those  who  had  suffered  shipwreck. 

These  seasons  were  peculiarly  interesting  to 
the  hated  and  hunted  disciples,  and  rendered 
doubly  dear  because  their  religious  professions 
cut  them  off  from  associations  with  their  early 
friends.  "It  is  a  custom,"  says  Chrysostom, 
"  most  beautiful  and  beneficial ;  for  it  is  a  sup- 
porter of  love,  a  solace  of  poverty,  a  moderator 
of  wealth,  and  a  discipline  of  humility." 

2.  Many  of  the  rites  which  a  guiding  Provi- 
dence had  made  subservient  to  the  interests  of 
the  Church  in  the  days  of  her  affliction  began 
to  be  perverted  when  prosperity  dawned  upon 
her.  Some  hoped,  by  merely  banqueting  with 
the  Church,  to  secure  a  moral  qualification  for 


Sec.  1I.J  LOVE-FEASTS.  87 

admission  into  the  sacred  mysteries ;  others 
supposed  that  by  providing  general  agapcB  for 
their  brethren,  they  would  perform  a  merito- 
rious work  which  would  personally  exalt  them 
in  the  sight  of  God  and  man  ;  and  others  gave 
occasion  for  pagans  to  suspect  that  the  same 
immoralities  were  practiced  in  the  Christian 
festivals  that  disgraced  Hieir  own.  For  these 
and  other  reasons  the  love-feasts  were  discon- 
tinued, in  the  Western  Church,  by  order  of  the 
Council  of  Carthage,  A.D.  397.  (See  Tertullian's 
Apol.  i,  39;  Apostol.  Constitution,  Book  If, 
c.  28  ;  Kitto's  Sac.  Lit.,  Art.  Agapce.} 

3.  Mr.  Wesley  assigns  the  following  reasons 
for  their  introduction  into  the  Methodistic  econ- 
omy :  "  In  order  to  increase  in  them  [persons 
in  bands]  a  grateful  sense  of  all  his  [God's] 
mercies,  I  desired  that  one  evening  in  a  quarter 
all  the  men  in  band,  on  a  second  all  the  women, 
would  meet ;  and  on  a  third  both  men  and 
women  together;  that  we  might  together  'cat 
bread,'  as  the  ancient  Christians  did,  '  with 
gladness  and  singleness  of  heart.'  At  these 
love-feasts  (so  we  termed  them,  retaining  the 
name  as  well  as  the  thing,  which  was  in  use 
from  the  beginning)  our  food  is  only  a  little 
plain  cake  and  water ;  but  we  seldom  return 


88  LOVE-FEASTS.  [Chap.  IV 

from  them  without  being  fed.  not  only  with  the 
*  meat  which  perisheth,'  but  with  '  that  which 
endureth  to  everlasting  life.' " —  Wesley 's  Works, 
vol.  v,  p.  183. 

4.  Members,    probationers,    and    "  well-dis- 
posed" baptized  children   of  our  members  are 
entitled  to  admission  into  the  love-feast  of  the 
circuit  or  station  to  which  he  belongs.  (See  Dis- 
cipline, 1840.)    The  term  "  strangers  "  embraces 
all  other  persons,  whether   members  of  other 
Christian  communions  or  not. 

5.  Bj  established  usage  the  presiding  elder  is 
entitled  to  hold  the  love-feast  at  the  quarterly 
meeting. 


Sea  L]  TRIAL  OF   MEMBERS.  39 


CHAPTER  Y. 
CHURCH  TRIALS. 

SECTION  I.— Trial  of  Members. 

1.  WE  now  enter  upon  a  subject  of  the  great- 
est importance  to  the  pastor.  The  pastoral 
office  is  instituted  to  guard  and  promote  the 
moral  and  religious  character  of  the  community. 
In  the  discharge  of  its  functions  counsel,  ad- 
monition, and  reproof  must  frequently  be  admin- 
istered, to  establish  the  wavering  and  to  reclaim 
the  erring.  It  cannot  be  anticipated  that  those 
duties  which  call  in  question  the  rectitude  of 
moral  character  can  be  discharged,  with  true 
Christian  fidelity,  without  occasionally  inflaming 
the  bad  passions  of  men,  and,  perhaps,  subject- 
ing one's  self  to  a  legal  prosecution  ;  and  hence 
it  is  important  to  inquire  how  far  the  civil  law 
recognizes  the  right  of  the  full  discharge  of  pas- 
toral duties.  Our  political  constitutions  guar- 
antee, in  general  terms,  to  every  individual  the 
natural  and  inalienable  right  to  worship  God 
according  to  the  dictates  of  his  own  conscience, 
and  promise  that  no  subject  shall  be  hurt,  mo- 


1*0  CHURCH   TRIALS.  ("Chap,  y, 

lested,  or  restrained,  in  person,  liberty,  or  estate, 
for  his  religious  sentiments  or  professions,  pro- 
vided that  he  does  not  disturb  the  public  peace, 
nor  infringe  upon  the  rights  of  others.  But 
these  principles  have  been  regarded  as  the  basis 
of  religious  freedom,  and  the  pledge  that  an  en- 
lightened conscience  shall  not  be  violated,  rather 
than  the  foe  to  those  religious  associations  which 
bind  its  members  to  watch  over  each  other's 
faith  and  practice  with  a  godly  jealousy.  It  is 
not  pretended  that  Churches  in  this  country 
possess,  in  a  legal  aspect,  more  power  than 
other  societies  voluntarily  organized,  with  such 
gradations  of  officers  and  judicatories  as  may 
subserve  the  moral  and  religious  purposes  of 
their  organization.  No  civil  disabilities  nor 
pecuniary  fines  can  be  inflicted  for  the  grossest 
violations  of  covenant  vows  ;  yet  the  right  of 
religious  societies  to  inquire  into  the  conduct  of 
their  members,  to  pass  votes  of  expulsion,  and 
record  their  proceedings  against  those  who  vio- 
late their  covenant  relations,  has  been  fully 
recognized  by  the  civil  tribunal :  nor  will  courts 
of  justice  inquire  whether  the  conduct  of  the 
aggrieved  member  merited  such  discipline,  pro- 
vided that  the  proceedings  of  the  Church  were 
according  to  the  established  usages  of  the  de- 
nomination, and  done  in  good  faith  without 


^ec.  I.]  TRIAL   OF   MEMBERS.  91 

malice.  And  even  if  the  case  lias  been  sub- 
mitted to  a  jury,  on  the  trial  of  the  indictment 
against  the  accused,  and  the  evidence  consid- 
ered insufficient  by  them  to  convict  the  accused 
of  the  crime  in  question,  it  serves  as  no  bar  to 
the  religious  society  investigating  the  case  de 
novo,  according  to  its  established  regulations. 
(Ref.  3  Johnson,  183.) 

2.  There  are  certain  privileged  communica- 
tions which,  although  they  may  inflict  real  in- 
jury upon  personal  reputation,  yet  do  not 
subject  a  person  to  a  criminal  prosecution,  on 
the  ground  that  the  good  of  society  required  the 
divulging  of  private  infamy.  The  giving  of  the 
character  of  a  servant  to  a  person  about  to  em- 
ploy him  may  be  slanderous  or  otherwise,  as  it 
is  done  with  honest  intentions,  or  with  a  design 
to  injure  and  defame.  A  representation  made 
by  members  of  a  religious  society  to  the  pastor, 
or  to  a  Church  judicatory  having  power  to  hear, 
examine,  and  redress  grievances,  in  respect  to  the 
ministry  or  laity,  is prima facie  a  privileged  com- 
munication. "  The  law  concedes,"  says  Judge 
Cowen,  "  the  right  of  petition  and  remonstrance 
to  a  spiritual  superior,  when  they  are  pre- 
sented with  a  view  to  redress.  The  proper 
channel  being  pursued,  the  Church  member  is 


92  CHURCH  TEIALS. 

entitled  to  the  same  measure  of  protection  as  if 
he  had,  when  writing  the  libel,  beeu  engaged  in 
seeking  the  removal  of  an  inferior  officer  at  the 
hands  of  a  superior,  created  by  the  constitution 
or  the  law."— 19  Wendall,  296;  23  Wendall, 
26  ;  2  Pick,  310. 

3.  It  is  a  principle  clearly  recognized  by  the 
Discipline  of  our  Church,  that  no  member,  in 
full  connection,  can  be  dropped  or  expelled  by 
the  preacher  in  charge  until  the  select  commit- 
tee, or  the  society  of  which  he  is  a  member, 
declares,  in  due  form,  that  he  is  guilty  of  the 
violation  of  some  scriptural  or  moral  principle, 
or  some  requisition  of  Church  covenant.  The 
restrictive  rules  guarantee,  both  to  our  ministers 
and  members,  the  privilege  of  trial  and  of  ap- 
peal ;  and  the  General  Conference  has  explicitly 
declared  that  "  it  is  the  right  of  every  member 
of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  to  remain  in 
said  Church,  unless  guilty  of  the  violation  of  its 
rules ;  and  there  exists  no  power  in  the  minis- 
try, either  individually  or  collectively,  to  de- 
prive any  member  of  said  right." — Gen.  Conf. 
Jour.,  1818,  p.  73.  The  fact  that  the  member 
is  guilty  of  the  violation  of  the  rules  of  the 
Church  must  be  formally  proved  before  the 
body  holding  original  jurisdiction  in  the  case. 


Sec.  I.]  TRIAL   OF   MEMBERS.  93 

If  the  administrator  personally  knows  that  the 
charges  are  substantially  true,  it  does  not  au- 
thorize him  to  remove  the  accused  member. 
The  law  recognizes  no  member  as  guilty  until 
the  evidence  of  guilt  is  duly  presented  to  the 
proper  tribunal,  and  the  verdict  is  rendered. 

4:.  The  mode  of  removing  unworthy  members, 
in  former  times,  was  very  different  from  the  one 
now  practiced.  At  every  quarterly  visitation 
Mr.  Wesley  gave  a  ticket  to  each  member 
bearing  the  member's  name  upon  it.  This 
ticket  was  a  symbol,  or  tessera,  as  the  ancients 
termed  such,  denoting  that  the  person  holding 
it  was  recognized  as  a  member  of  the  society. 

"  These,"  says  Mr.  Wesley,  "  also  supplied  us 
with  a  quiet  and  inoffensive  method  of  removing 
any  disorderly  member.  lie  has  no  new  ticket 
at  the  quarterly  visitation — for  so  often  the 
tickets  are  changed — and  hereby  it  is  immedi- 
ately known  that  he  is  no  longer  of  the  commu- 
nity."—  Wesley's  Works,  vol.  v,  p.  182. 

SECTION  IT. — President  of  the  Trial. 

1.  An  accused  member  must  be  brought  to 
trial  before  a  committee  in  the  presence  of  the 
preacher  in  charge,  who  shall  preside  in  the 


i)4:  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

trial.  The  Discipline  requires  that  the  preacher 
in  charge  shall  pronounce  him  expelled  whom 
the  select  committee  have  found  guilty  of  a 
crime  expressly  forbidden  in  the  word  of  God. 
If  members  willfully  and  habitually  neglect  the 
means  of  grace  (Discipline,  ^[  234)  and  will  not 
amend,  it  is  made  the  duty  of  "  him  who  has 
the  charge  of  the  circuit  or  station  to  bring 
their  case  before  the  society,  or  a  select  number 
of  them."  The  preacher  in  charge  is  required 
to  "  receive,  try,  and  expel  members,  according 
to  the  form  of  Discipline."  The  history  of  the 
rule  confirms  the  exposition  we  have  given. 
The  section  respecting  "bringing  to  trial  dis- 
orderly members "  was  drawn  up  by  Bishop 
Asbury,  in  1788,  and  introduced  into  the  Dis- 
cipline in  the  following  year.  The  original 
section  did  not  specify  by  whom  the  convicted 
member  should  be  expelled,  but  it  was  indefi- 
nitely stated,  "  Let  him  be  expelled."  But  a 
note  was  appended  to  the  Minutes,  in  the  same 
year,  explanatory  of  this  section,  and  setting 
forth  upon  whom  the  responsibility  of  conduct- 
ing a  Church  trial  rested :  "As  a  very  few  persons 
have  in  some  respects  mistaken  our  meaning,  in 
the  thirty-second  section  of  our  form  of  Dis- 
cipline, on  bringing  to  trial  disorderly  members, 
etc.,  we  think  it  necessary  to  explain  it.  When 


Sec.  II.]          PRESIDENT  OF  THE  TRIAL.  95 

a  member  of  our  society  is  to  be  tried  for  any 
offense,  the  officiating  minister,  or  preacher,  is 
to  call  together  all  the  members,  if  the  society 
be  small,  or  a  select  number  of  it  if  it  be  large, 
to  take  knowledge,  and  give  advice,  and  bear 
witness  to  the  justice  of  the  whole  process  ;  that 
improper  and  private  expulsions  may  be  pre- 
vented for  the  future."  In  1792  the  rule  was 
amended,  to  remove  all  obscurity,  so  as  to  read  : 
"Let  the  minister  or  preacher  who  has  the 
charge  (>f  the  circuit  expel  him."  Rev.  William 
Watters,  the  first  American  preacher  who  joined 
the  itinerancy,  also  shows  how  the  rule  was  un- 
derstood in  the  days  of  the  fathers.  "  But  while 
he  [the  bishop]  superintends  the  whole  work," 
he  remarks,  "  he  cannot  interfere  with  the  par- 
ticular charge  of  any  of  the  preachers  in  their 
stations.  To  see  that  the  preachers  h'll  their 
places  with  propriety,  and  to  understand  the 
state  of  every  station  or  circuit,  that  he  may  the 
better  make  the  appointment  of  the  preachers, 
is,  no  doubt,  no  small  part  of  his  duty  ;  but  he 
has  nothing  tc  do  with  receiving,  censuring,  or  ex- 
cluding members :  this  belongs  wholly  to  the  sta- 
tioned preacher  and  members.'1'' — Memoirs,  p.  105. 

2.  A  presiding  elder  may  appoint  a  preacher 
from  another  circuit  on  his  district  to  the  charge, 


96  CHURCH  TRIALS.  Chap.  V, 

to  preside  at  a  Church  trial,  when  the  circum- 
stances of  the  case  seem  to  demand  it.  In  such 
cases  the  former  preacher  in  charge  becomes  a 
junior  preacher,  until  the  close  of  the  trial. 
But  no  preacher  in  charge  can  transfer  his 
authority  to  another  preacher  on  his  own  re- 
sponsibility. 

3.  A  junior  preacher  cannot  preside  at  the 
trial  of  a  member.     If  the  senior  preacher  can- 
not attend,  the  presiding  elder  should  put  the 
junior  preacher,   or   some    other   preacher,   in 
charge  during  the  trial. 

4.  "  In   all   trials  of  members  or  preachers, 
whether  by  committee  or  before  a  conference, 
and  in  all  appeals,  it  is  improper  for  the  pre- 
siding officer  at  the  trial  to  deliver  a  charge  to 
the   committee  [or   conference]  explaining  the 
evidence   and  setting  forth  the   merits  of  the 
case." — Discipline,  ^f  246. 

SECTION  III. —  Complaint. 

1.  When  public  rumor  accuses  a  member  of 
having  committed  a  crime,  prudential  consid- 
erations would  dictate  that  the  pastor,  or  a 
committee,  be  appointed  to  visit  the  person  so 


Sec.  III.]  COMPLAINT.  97 

accused,  and  examine  the  foundation  of  the 
reports,  before  any  other  action  is  taken.  If 
the  reports  are  evidently  unfounded,  the  mem- 
ber is  not  mortified  by  the  additional  report 
that  he  has  been  arraigned  before  the  Church. 
Such  a  committee  is  prepared  also  to  rescue  the 
character  of  a  suffering  brother,  by  a  presenta- 
tion of  the  facts  which  a  diligent  investigation 
elicited.  Such,  a  procedure  also  shows  the  care 
and  jealousy  with  which  the  Church  watches 
over  the  Christian  reputation  of  her  mem- 
bers. 

2.  The  administrator  of  discipline  must  ordi- 
narily reduce  to  suitable  form  the  charges  and 
specifications  from  the  rough  story  of  the  com- 
plainant.    To  give  no  attention   to  any  com- 
plaints except  such  as  are  presented  in  due  form, 
is  to  neglect  the  greatest  number  of  those  re- 
quiring the  special  investigation  of  the  Church. 

3.  A  bill  of  charges  should  not  be  drawn  on 
the  mere  declaration  of  a  complainant  that  he 
"  has  probable  cause  to  suspect  "  a  member  of 
being  guilty  of  crime;  but   even    this,   under 
some  circumstances,  might  justify  the  raising  of 
a  committee  to  investigate  the  facts  in  the  case. 
Nor  is  a  report,  made  by  one  whose  testimony 

7 


98  CHURCH  TBIALS.  [Chap.  V 

would  not  be  received  in  an  ecclesiastical  court, 
a  sufficient  basis  to  justify  an  arrest  of  charac- 
ter, unless  there  are  collateral  circumstances  or 
facts  to  corroborate  the  statements  of  the 
accuser. 

4.  Any  crime,  committed  at  however  remote 
a  period,  if  it  be  within  the  time  in  which  tho 
accused  has  been  a  member  of  the  Church,  is 
indictable  ;  but  it  cannot  extend  to  any  period 
beyond   membership.     Charges   of  immorality 
against  preachers  should  not  be  restricted  to  the 
time  in  which  they  have  been  in  the  ministry, 
but  may  extend  to  any  time  within  their  Church 
membership. 

5.  It  does  not  destroy  the  actionable  charactei 
of  a  complaint,  that  the  predecessor  of  the  admin- 
istrator, though  acquainted  with  the  facts,  took 
no  legal  notice  of  them.     The  indictable  char- 
acter of  an  act  depends  upon  the  fact  whether 
it  is  a  violation  of  the  moral  law  and  Clmr 
covenant,  and  not  upon  the  administration  o 
frail  man. 

6.  Accessories  to  crime  may  be  complained 
of  before  or  after  the  fact ;  and  the  same  pro- 
ceedings should  be  had,  in  every  respect,  as  if 


Sec.  III.]  COMPLAINT  9U 

the  accused  were  charged  oi  being  principal  in 
the  offense. 


7.  In  drawing  out  a  bill  of  charges  the  fol- 
lowing order  should  be  observed : 

a.  A  brief  statement  of  the  charge. 

1).  The  specification,  or  specifications,  by  which 
it  is  sustained. 

This  order  should  be  observed  until  every 
charge  is  presented,  and  the  different  specifi- 
cations are  arranged  under  their  appropriate 
heads.  For  example : 

I.  Charge— Theft. 

1.  Specification — "  In  taking,  on  the  fourth 
of  July,"  etc. 

2.  Specification . 

II.  Charge — Falsehood. 

1.  Specification — "  In  saying,"  etc. 

2.  Specification . 

8.  The  object  of  the  rule  requiring  the  charge 
to  be  particularly  set  forth  is  threefold  :  first,  to 
apprise  the  accused  of  the  precise  nature  of  the 
charge  made  against  him ;  secondly,  to  enable 
the  court  to  determine  whether  the  facts 
constitute  an  offense,  and  to  render  the 
proper  award  thereon  ;  and,  thirdly,  that  the 
judgment  may  -be  a  bar  to  any  future  prose- 


LOO  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V 

eution    for   the   sam6    offense.     (3  Stark.  Ev., 
152T.) 

9.  Every  charge  should   involve   an    offense 
which,  if  fully  sustained,  and  without  any  miti- 
gating circumstances,  would  be  of  a  sufficiently 
aggravating  character    to    demand    a    special 
Church  penalty. 

10.  There  should  be  a  perfect  correspondence 
between   the    charge    and    the    specifications. 
Every  specification,  if  fully  sustained,  ought  to 
be  of  such  a  character  as  to  sustain  the  charge  ; 
and  it  ought  not  to  involve  a  higher  or  a  lower 
offence  than  that  which  is  charged  in  the  bill. 
If  the  charge  is  immorality,  no  specifications 
should  be  given  under  it  which  involve  only  an 
imprudence  ;   and  if  the  charge  is  imprudent 
conduct,  no  specification  should  be  given  which 
involves  an  immorality. 

11.  Every  charge  should  be  expressed  in  as 
mild  language  as  possible,  and  yet  involve  an 
actionable   offence ;  and    as  few    charges   and 
specifications   should   be  given  as  practicable, 
and  yet    secure  the    great    object  of    Church 
action. 


Sec.  111.]  COMPLAINT.  101 

12.  Two   distinct  crimes  should   not  be  set 
forth  under  one  charge,  unless  they  are  of  such 
a    character   that,  when   they    are   committed, 
they  constitute  but  one  legal  offence — as  assault 
and  battery :  the  latter   includes   the  former. 
And  each  specification  should  set  forth  one,  and 
only  one,  averment  of  the  offence  specified  in 
the  charge.     The  specifications  should  be  stated 
in  the  most  explicit  and  perspicuous  language, 
and  all  immaterial  facts,  not  necessary  ingre- 
dients of  the  offence,  should  be  carefully  avoided. 
All  averments   should  be  made  positively  that 
the  accused  did  so  and  so.  and  not  by  way  of 
recital  or  argument. 

13.  Every  complaint,  setting  forth  a  crime, 
should  specify,  as  far  as  possible,  the  time  and 
place  in  which  it  was  committed  ;  but  the  charge 
of  disseminating  erroneous  doctrine,  or  of  being 
unacceptable,  inefficient,  or   secular,  does  not, 
in  most  cases,  admit  of  specific   particularity. 
In  these  cases,  it  is  the  serial  character  of  the 
acts  which,  to  a  very  great  extent,  constitutes 
the  offence. 

14.  Any  error  in  the  name  of  the  person,  or 
in  the  circumstances  described   in  the  bill  of 
charges,  provided  the  general  meaning  is  clearly 


102  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

expressed,  and  the  error  is  of  such  a  character 
as  not  to  change  the  issue  of  the  case,  ought  not 
to  be  deemed  a  bar  to  the  proceedings.  The 
ends  of  justice  ought  never  to  suffer  from  mere 
technicalities  ;  but  the  charges  and  specifications 
must  be  so  correctly  drawn  that  the  accused 
may  fully  understand,  from  the  complaint  itself, 
the  true  nature  of  the  case,  and  what  he  must 
show  to  establish  his  innocence. 

15.  All  complaints  setting  forth  charges  and 
specifications  must  be  signed  by  some  member 
of  the  Church.     If  the  complaint  is  originally 
made  by  a  person  not  a  member  of  the  Church, 
the  bill  of  charges  must  be  signed  by  one  over 
whom  the  Church  exercises  jurisdiction.     It  is 
not  necessary  that   the  person  signing  the  bill 
of  charges  should  be  an  accuser,  in  the  sense  of 
the  Discipline.     "An  aggrieved  person,"  says 
Bishop  M'Kendree,  "may  be  a  complainant; 
but  our  Discipline  does  not  recognize  any  one 
as  an  accuser  unless  he  be  a  witness  in  the  case 
against  the  accused." 

16.  It  is  not  advisable  that  a  presiding  elder 
should  sign  a  bill  of  charges  against  a  preacher 
which  must  be  investigated  before  himself;  nor 
should  a  preacher  in  charge  sign  a  bill  of  charges 


Sec.  Ill  ] 


COMPLAINT.  103 


against  one  of  his  members,  unless  the  members 
of  the  Church  refuse  to  do  it.  In  those  cases 
where  a  preacher  in  charge  feels  it  his  duty  to 
prefer  a  charge  against  a  member  of  his  flock, 
the  presiding  elder  should,  ordinarily,  put  some 
other  preacher  in  charge  to  try  the  case. 

It  is  a  principle  universally  regarded  in  civil 
proceedings  that  no  judge  shall  be  counsel,  noi 
act  as  attorney,  nor  advise  nor  assist  any  party 
in  any  case  which  will  come  before  him  ;  and 
the  principle  is  so  manifestly  founded  in  justice 
that  it  should  not  be  disregarded  in  ecclesias- 
tical proceedings.  In  those  extreme  cases  where 
a  member  cannot  be  found  who  will  sign  a  bill 
of  charges,  there  must  exist  such  peculiarities 
and  difficulties  in  the  case  as  not  only  to  re- 
quire a  strictly  impartial  presiding  officer,  but 
one  who  will  have  the  reputation  of  being 
impartial. 

17.  Where   several   persons   are  accused  of 
having  been  connected  in   the  commission  ol 
any  crime,  the  charges  and  specifications  should 
be  made  out  separately,  and  each  person  tried 
separately. 

18.  Every  member  accused  of  crime  is  entitled 
to  a  copy  of  the  charges  and  specifications,  for 


104  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

a  time  sufficiently  long  before  the  trial  for  him 
to  prepare  his  defense. 

19.  If  a  copy  of  the  charges  and  specifications, 
duly  signed,  is  left  at  the  usual  residence  of  the 
accused,  it  should  be  deemed  a  sufficient  cita- 
tion, even  if  the  accused  has  fled  from  the  place, 
or  his  present  residence  is  not  known. 

SECTION  TV.— Select  Committee. 

1.  The'  Discipline   requires  that  an  accused 
member  shall  be  brought  "  before  a  committee 
of  not  less  than  five,  (except  in  case  of  neglect 
of  duty,  in  which   case   the   accused  may  be 
brought  before  the  society  or  a  select  commit- 
tee,) who  shall  not  be  members  of  the  quarterly 
conference;   and   if  the  preacher  judge  neces- 
sary, the  committee  may  be  selected  from  any 
part  of  the  district."       In  either  case  it  should 
be  understood  that  only  members  in  full  con- 
nection are  intended.     In  1789  the  following 

o 

explanation  of  the  rule  was  published  in  the 
Discipline  :  "  The  officiating  minister  or  preach- 
er is  to  call  together  all  the  members,  if  the  so- 
iety  be  small,  or  a  select  number  if  it  be  large." 

2.  If  the  accused  member  is  brought  before  a 
select  number,  the  preacher  in  charge  must  ap- 


See.  IV.]  SELECT  COMMITTEE.  105 

point  them.  And  "  in  case  of  trial  before  a 
select  committee,  the  parties  may  challenge  for 
cause."  (Discipline,  1  230.) 

3.  "  In  selecting  a  committee  for  the  trial 
of  a  member,"  Bishop  Hedding  remarks,  "  a 
preacher  ought  to  be  very  careful  to  obtain  wise, 
pious,  and  candid  men,  who  will  do  justice  both 
to  the  accused  person  and  to  the  Church. 
There  should  be  a  sufficient  number  of  them  to 
form  a  respectable  court :  for  the  decision  of  so 
important  a  matter  should  not  be  left  to  two  or 
three  individuals." 

The  committee  should  consist  of  men  of  such 
acknowledged  virtue  and  integrity  that  their 
opinions  will  be  respected  both  by  the  Church 
and  the  world.  Many  persons  of  deep  and  ar- 
dent piety,  unaccustomed  to  weigh  evidence  and 
balance  testimony,  and  whose  hearts  are  full  of 
gushing  sympathy  for  the  erring,  are  not  well 
qualified  to  discharge  the  duties  of  a  select  com- 
mittee, where  the  honor  and  reputation  of  the 
Church  are  at  stake.  No  less  qualifications, 
certainly,  should  be  deemed  satisfactory  in  those 
who  sit  in  solemn  judgment  on  the  moral  and 
Christian  reputation  of  one  for  whom  Christ 
died,  than  is  demanded  of  the  juror  at  a  civil 
tribunal.  Such  are  required  to  be  men  of  prob- 


106  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Shap.  V. 

ity  and  intelligence,  free  from  personal  interest 
and  party  prejudice:  much  more  should  the 
Christian  man  be  tree  from  all  undue  bias  while 
investigating  the  character  of  a  professed  mem- 
ber of  the  body  of  Christ.  The  peace  and  pros- 
perity of  the  Church,  and  the  salvation  of  the 
accused,  stand  so  closely  connected  with  the  re- 
sults of  a  Church  trial,  that  justice  and  equity 
should  be  most  impartially  administered.  Many 
causes,  such  as  kindred,  prejudice,  etc.,  which 
would  not  render  one  incompetent  as  a  witness, 
are  sufficient  to  disqualify  him  as  a  member  of 
the  select  committee.  The  committee  must  not 
be  composed  of  members  of  the  quarterly  con- 
ference ;  that,  in  case  of  appeal,  a  new  tribunal 
may  decide  upon  the  merits  of  the  case.  (Dis- 
cipline, 1  230.) 

4.  "  The  circumstances  of  the  case,''  says 
Chief-Justice  Pennington,  "  the  probable  or  im- 
probable nature  of  the  facts  detailed,  the  char- 
acter of  the  witness,  the  manner  of  his  giving 
testimony,  must  all  be  taken  into  consideration, 
and  ought,  after  being  duly  weighed,  to  carry 
conviction  to  the  minds  of  the  jury  before  they 
give  it  [the  testimony]  an  effect  by  their  verdict. 
Should  a  witness  relate  a  fact  which,  from  its 
improbable  nature,  or  from  the  badness  of  the 
character  of  the  witness,  taken  together  with  tho 


Sbe.  IV.]  SELECT   COMMITTEE.  107 

circumstances  in  the  case,  on  due  consideration 
does  not  carry  a  belief  of  the  fact  home  to  the 
minds  of  the  jury,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  they 
believe  what  the  witness  hath  related  is  false, — 
in  that  case  what  he  has  said  is  no  evidence  to 
them,  and  they  are  not  bound  to  give  any 
weight  to  it ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  if  they  act 
upon  it,  or  rather  make  up  their  verdict  upon 
it,  such  conduct  is  a  departure  from  their  duty, 
and  little  short  of  a  violation  of  their  oath." 
The  weight  of  testimony  is  a  question  belonging 
to  the  select  committee  exclusively. 

5.  The  committee  have  no  right,  in  forming 
their  opinion,  to  take  into  consideration  any 
facts  within  their  own  cognizance,  of  which  no 
evidence  was  presented  in  the  trial.     If  any 
member  of  the  committee  knew  any  important 
fact,  lie  should  have  stated  it  as  a  witness. 

6,  Making  up  judgment. 

a.  The  committee  should  first  inquire  whethe) 
the  specifications  have  been  sustained  by  evi 
dence. 

~b.  Whether,  the  specifications  being  sustained, 
the  charge  is  proved.  All  the  specifications 
may  be  proved,  and  yet  the  charge  be  not  sus- 
tained ;  but  if  the  specifications  are  not  sus- 


108  CHURCH   TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

tained,  the  charge,  of  course,  cannot  be  sustained 
in  the  highest  degree. 

c.  The  whole  question  of  guilt  rests  upon  the 
decision  of  the  committee.     It  is  to  decide,  if 
the  charge  is  one  of  immorality,  whether  the 
crime  is  one  of  the  first  or  second  degree.    There 
may  be  palliating  circumstances  which  should 
be  taken  into  the  account,  and  which  greatly 
modify  the  guilt,  and  hence  should  change  the 
penalty.     Bishop  Hedding  remarks  :  "Another 
question  has   arisen   here.     When    the   *  select 
number  '  judges  a  member  guilty  of  the  act  of 
which  he  is  accused,  who  is  to  judge  whether 
that  act  is  a  crime,  in  the  sense  of  the  rule — the 
select  number  or   the  preacher?     The  select 
number  :  for  the  crime  is  included  in  the  judg- 
ment of  '  guilty.'     When  the  judgment  of  guilty 
is  rendered,  the  rule  says,  '  Let  the  preacher  in 
charge  expel  him.' ': 

d.  The  judgment  of  the  committee  should 
never  be  given  VERBALLY,  but  should  be  written, 
and  signed  by  all  of  the  committee  who  approve 
of  the  decision.     A  majority  of  the  committee 
is  competent  to  render  a  verdict  in  a  Church  trial. 

It  is  not  expected  of  the  committee  that  it 
will  set  forth,  in  its  verdict,  the  grounds  of  its 
judgment ;  but  there  may  be  circumstances  in 
which  this  may  be  necesKary. 


Sec.  IV.]  SELECT  COMMITTEE.  109 

The  committee  is  allowed  to  have  before  it 
all  the  maps,  charts,  and  written  documents 
which  were  admitted  during  the  trial. 

7.  The  question  has  frequently  been  asked, 
May  the  preacher  remain  with  the  select  num- 
ber while  they  are  making  up  their  judgment  ? 
In  reply,  Bishop  Hedding  remarks :  "  Certainly 
he  ought,  for  he  is  pastor  of  the  flock ;  and  he 
would  greatly  neglect  his  duty  were  he  to  be 
absent,  and  consequently  not  know  on  what  law 
or  evidence  the  judgment  is  rendered."  Mr. 
Wesley  believed  that  the  New  Testament  makes 
the  pastor  responsible  to  Christ  for  the  purity 
of  the  flock,  and  hence  he  should  judge  as  to  the 
guilt  or  innocence  of  the  accused  member.  Our 
fathers  administered  the  Discipline  on  this  prin- 
ciple up  to  the  year  1800.  It  was  then  pro- 
vided that  the  society,  or  select  committee, 
should  pronounce  an  opinion  upon  the  guilt  or 
innocence  of  the  accused  ;  and  the  action  of  the 
preacher  was  to  be  governed  by  this  decision. 
The  entire  responsibility  of  the  decision,  we  re- 
peat, rests  alone  upon  the  committee.  The 
preacher,  under  no  circumstances,  should  at- 
tempt to  balance  the  evidence,  weigh  probabil- 
ities, determine  the  credibility  of  witnesses,  or 
draw  inferences  from  the  facts  proved,  and  thus 


110  CHURCH    TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

determine  disputed  questions  of  fact,  even  at  the 
request  of  the  parties.  "  No  judicious  adminis- 
trator of  the  Discipline,"  says  Bishop  Morris, 
•'  will  let  the  committee,  or  any  other  person, 
know  his  opinion  of  the  case,  either  before  the 
Irial  or  during  its  progress,  till  the  members  of 
the  committee  have  made  their  decision  and 
signed  their  names  to  it." 

8.  When  the  words  of  a  charge  or  specifica- 
tion are  susceptible  of  two  meanings,  the  select 
committee  must  determine  in  what  sense  they 
are  used. 

9.  When  an  accused  member  is  brought  to 
trial  before  the  society,  all  members  in  full  con- 
nection, whether  males  or  females,  are  entitled 
to  vote.     The  select  committee  may  consist  in 
part  of  females,  where  the  circumstances  seem 
to  demand   it.     Usage,  however,  restricts  the 
select  committee  to  males.  (Bishop  Janes.) 


SECTION  V. — The  Trial. 

1.  It  is  the  duty  of  the  presiding  officer  to 
conduct  the  religious  services  of  the  occasion,  to 
read  the  names  of  the  select  committee  and  the 
counsel  of  the  parties,  to  appoint  a  secretary  to 


Sec.  V.J  THE   TRIAL.  Ill 

keep  a  correct  record  of  the  trial,  to  read  the 
charges  and  specifications  to  the  accused,  to  de- 
cide who  are  competent  witnesses,  and  whether 
the  documents  offered  are  admissible,  and  to  de- 
cide all  questions  of  law  which  arise  in  the  proc- 
ess of  the  trial.  If  the  accused  is  expelled,  and 
dissatisfied  with  the  ruling  of  the  presiding  of- 
ficer, he  has  the  following  remedy :  on  a  ques- 
tion of  law,  either  party  may  appeal  to  the 
decision  of  the  president  of  the  next  annual  con- 
ference ;  on  dissatisfaction,  the  accused  may  ap- 
peal to  the  ensuing  quarterly  conference,  or  he 
may  charge  the  presiding  officer  with  malad- 
ministration before  the  annual  conference. 

2.  Mode  of  conducting  a  trial. 

a.  The  arraignment. 

(1.)  Reading  the  charges  and  specifications 

to  the  accused. 
(2.)  Demanding  his  reply  to  the  charge. 

1).  The  accuser  calls  and  examines  his  wit- 
nesses.    Cross-examination  by  the  accused. 

c    The  accused  puts  in  his  evidence.     Cross- 
examination  by  the  accuser. 

d.  Rebutting  testimony  by  the  accuser. 

e.  Rebutting  testimony  by  the  accused. 

f.  Closing  arguments. 
(1.)  By  the  accuser. 


112  CHUKCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

(2.)  By  the  accused. 

(3.)  By  the  accuser. 
g.  Yerdict  by  the  committee. 
h.  Announcement  of  acquittal  or  expulsion 

by  the  presiding  officer. 

3.  If  the  accused  voluntarily  confesses  that 
he  is  guilty  of  the  charge,  no  further  evidence 
will  of  course  follow :  the  case  is  at  once  to  be 
submitted  to  the  committee. 

4.  If  the  accused  refuses  to  answer  to  the 
charge,  or  answers  foreign  to  the  purpose,  it  is 
deemed  in  law  equivalent   to   answering    not 
guilty,  unless  he  is  dumb  ex  visitatione  Dei. 

5.  ISTo  member  can  be  held  to  answer  on  a 
second  indictment  for  any  offense  of  which  he 
has  been  acquitted  by  a  committee,  on  the  facts 
and  merits,  on  a  former  trial.     But  if  he  is  ac- 
quitted upon  the  ground  of  a  variance  between 
the  indictment  and  the  proof,  or  upon  any  ex- 
ception to  the  form  and  substance,  of  the  indict- 
ment, he  may  be  tried  on  a  new  process,  and 
convicted  for  the  same  offense,  notwithstanding 
such  former  acquittal.     A  plea  of  former  ac- 
quittal is  valid  only  when  the  accused  has  been 
acquitted  in  due  form  by  a  tribunal  competent 


Sec   V  J  THE   TRIAL.  113 

to  make  a  final  disposition  of  the  case.  If  a 
local  or  traveling  preacher,  therefore,  should  be 
acquitted  by  a  committee  called  by  the  preacher 
in  charge,  or  the  presiding  elder,  such  acquittal 
would  serve  as  no  bar  to  a  subsequent  arraign- 
ment, on  the  same  charges  and  specifications, 
before  the  quarterly  or  district  conference,  or 
before  the  annual  conference,  as  the  case  may 
be  ;  for  these  tribunals  alone  have  original  juris- 
diction over  local  and  traveling  preachers. 

6.  "  May  a  person   who  has  not  been  form- 
ally received  into  full  connection  in  the  Church, 
but  has  for  a  term  of  years  enjoyed  all  the  privi- 
leges of  a   member,  and    is   supposed   by  the 
preacher  in  charge  and  society  to  be  a  member, 
plead  the  fact  of  his  non-reception  as  a  bar  to 
proceedings  in  case  of  alleged  immorality? 

"  Ans.  JSTo."—  Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1860,  p.  298. 

7.  When  the  accused  has  any  special  matter 
to  plead  in  abatement,  or  bar  to  the  proceedings, 
he  should  present  it  at  the  opening  of  the  oase. 

8.  Omissions  and  errors,  when  the  true  intent 
evidently  appears,  may   be  corrected ;    but  no 
amendment   can,   during   the   progress    of  the 
trial,  be  admitted  which  in  any  degree  changes 


114  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

the  issue  of  the  case.  During  the  trial  a  new 
charge  or  specification  cannot  be  admitted;  jet 
a  charge  or  specification  may  be  withdrawn 
before  a  verdict  is  rendered.  For  example, 
when  a  charge  is  brought  for  slander,  consisting 
of  two  counts,  say  of  theft  and  perjury,  the 
specification  of  perjury  may  be  withdrawn,  and 
all  the  testimony  by  which  it  was  supported, 
and  the  verdict  be  rendered  merely  in  reference 
to  the  specification  of  theft. 

9.  When    charges    are    preferred    against  a 
member,  the  preacher  in  charge  has  no  right  to 
rule  out  of  the  bill  of  charges  any  specification 
which  is  legally  actionable  under  our  rules  of 
discipline  ;  but  an  annual,  district,  or  quarterly 
conference   may   retain    or   dismiss   the   whole 
or  any  part  of  the  bill  of  charges,  as  it  may 
judge  proper. 

10.  When  an  important  witness  is  absent  by 
no  fault  of  the  party  for  which  he  is  to  testify, 
or  when  a  party  is  surprised  by  evidence  which 
he   did  not   anticipate,   the   trial  may  be  ad- 
journed upon  application  of  the  party,  at  the 
discretion  of  the  presiding  officer,  to  some  suit- 
able time  when  all  the  important  witnesses  may 
be  present. 


Sec.  V.]  THE   TRIAL.  115 

•  11.  Averments  of  immaterial  facts,  not  neces- 
sary ingredients  in  the  offense,  and  without 
which  the  complaint  would  be  good,  may  be 
rejected,  and  need  not  be  proved. 

12.  If  an  accused  member  evades  a  trial  by 
absenting  himself  after  sufficient  notice  has  been 
given,  and  without  requesting  any  one  to  appear 
in  his  behalf,  it  does  not  preclude  the  necessity 
of  a   formal    trial.      The    preacher   in    charge 
should  appoint  competent  counsel   to  conduct 
the  defense,  and  all  the  evidence  in  the  case 
should  be  presented  in  due  form  to  the  com- 
mittee.    If  the  committee  decide  that  the  cir- 
cumstances of  the  accusation  afford  strong  pre- 
sumption of  guilt,  the  accused  is  to  be  esteemed 
as  guilty,    and    accordingly   excluded    by   the 
preacher  in  charge ;  but  in  no  case  can  expul- 
sion take  place  until  such  a  verdict  is  rendered. 
The  committee,  and  not  the  preacher  in  charge, 
must  decide  when  a  member  "evades  a  trial," 
in  the  sense  of  the  Discipline. 

13.  The  trial  must  be  limited  to  the  particular 
charge  brought  against  the  accused.     If  a  dif- 
ferent crime  is  proved   from   the   one  alleged 
against  him,  he  cannot  be.  held  to  answer  to  it, 
unless  there  is   a  new  bill  of  charges, 

cT» 


116  CHURCH  TRIALS  [Chap.  V, 

forth  the  particular  offense  complained  of,  and 
a  trial  de  novo  held,  according  to  the  form 
of  Discipline. 

•14.  There  may  be  circumstances  which  would 
justify  a  preacher  in  refusing  to  entertain  a  bill 
of  charges,  even  when  signed  by  respectable 
members  of  the  Church.  In  such  cases  the 
accusers  may,  if  they  deem  it  proper,  complain 
of  the  preacher  to  his  presiding  elder,  or  to  the 
conference,  for  neglect  of  duty  ;  and  the  pre- 
siding elder  may  remove  him  from  the  charge, 
and  the  conference  try  him  for  neglect  of  minis- 
terial duty. 

15.  After  charges  have  been  entertained,  and 
the  trial  has  proceeded  until  the  complainant 
has  produced   his   testimony,  the  case   cannot 
then  be  dismissed  without  the  consent  of  the 
complainant.  (Bishop  Waugh.) 

16.  If  the  accused  desires  assistance  in  con- 
ducting his  defense,  all  necessary  aid  should  be 
given  him,  and  he  should  be  allowed  to  make 
full   defense  by   himself  and    counsel,  and   to 
make  any  proof  by  competent  witnesses  whom 
he   may   produce.     The  accused  member  may 
select  his  own  counsel,  provided  that  such  coun- 


Sec.  VL]  THE  TRIAL.  117 

sel  is  a  member  in  good  and  regular  standing  in 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 

17.  It  is  highly  improper,  ordinarily,  to  con- 
duct a  trial  in  a  public  congregation.     None 
should  be  present  except  the  parties  summoned  : 
at  least,  unless  they  are  members  of  the  Church. 

18.  When  testimony  has  been  admitted  and 
journalized,  it  cannot  be  taken  from  the  record 
without  the  consent  of  both  parties. 

19.  "  In  all  cases  of  trial  and  appeal  it  is  im- 
proper  for  the    presiding   officer  to  deliver   a 
charge  to  the  committee  explaining  the  evidence 
and  setting  forth  the  merits  of  the  case." — 
Discipline,  T  246. 

SECTION  YI. — General  Laws  of  Evidence. 

1.  Every  administrator  of  Discipline  should 
have  a  correct  knowledge  of  the  general  laws 
of  evidence,  as  established  by  the  civil  judi- 
ciary; for  though  in  ecclesiastical  courts  mere 
technicalities  should  never  subvert  the  princi- 
ples of  equity,  yet  the  general  laws  of  evidence 
established  by  the  wisdom  of  ages  are  as  ap- 
plicable in  establishing  matters  of  fact  before  an 


118  CHURCH   TRIALS.  [Ghnp.  V. 

ecclesiastical  tribunal  as  before  a  civil.     Some 
of  these  principles  are  the  following  ; 

2.  First.  The  evidence  must  correspond  with 
the  allegations,  and  be  confined  to  the  point  in 
issue.     It  is  supposed  that  nothing  will  be  ex- 
pressed in  the  bill  of  charges  which  is  immate- 
rial ;  and  hence  every  allegation  set  forth  should 
be  supported  by  direct  testimony.     If,  however, 
the  specifications  are  drawn  out  with  unneces- 
sary particularity,  a  judicious  committee  might 
consider  as  surplusage  whatever  is  not  necessary 
to  constitute  the  crime.     Extraneous  facts  tend 
to  draw  away  the  minds  of  the  committee  from 
the  point  in  issue,  and  operate  unjustly  upon  the 
accused  ;  for  he  cannot  be  supposed  to  have  pre- 
pared himself  to  meet  any  point  except  the  gen- 
eral one  set  forth  in  the  bill  of  charges. 

3.  Secondly.  It  is  sufficient  if  the  substance 
of  the  issue  be  proved.     The  civil  law  makes  a 
distinction   between    allegations   of  matter   of 
substance  and  allegations  of  essential  descrip- 
tion.    It  is  sufficient  if  the  former  be  substan- 
tially proved  ;  but  the  latter  must  be  proved  with 
literal  precision.     In  ecclesiastical  trials,  where 
we  have  to  deal  with  actions  which  are  criminal 
in   themselves,  whatever  may   have  been   the 


Sec.  VI.]  LAWS   OF  EVIDENCE.  119 

circumstances  in  which  they  took  placev  the  rule 
may  be  applied,  with  hardly  an  exception,  that 
it  is  sufficient  if  the  substance  of  the  allegation 
be  proved.  "If,  in  an  action  for  malicious 
prosecution,  the  plaintiff  alleges  that  he  was 
acquitted  of  the  charge  on  a  certain  day,,  here 
the  substance  of  the  allegation  is  the  acquittal  ; 
and  it  is  sufficient  if  this  fact  be  proved  on  any 
day,  the  time  not  being  material."  If  the  aver- 
ment is  divisible,  and  enough  is  proved  to  con- 
stitute an  offense,  it  would  be  deemed  sufficient, 
both  in  a  civil  and  in  an  ecclesiastical  court, 
that  one  part  merely  was  proved.  Thus  an 
indictment  for  stealing  two  notes  of  equal  value 
would  be  sustained  if  the  evidence  only  proved 
that  one  note  was  stolen.  In  a  proceeding  to 
protect  public  morals,  nothing  should  be  deemed 
essential  but  that  which  constitutes  the  act  of 
crime. 

4.  Thirdly.  The  obligation  of  proving  any 
fact  lies  upon  the  party  who  substantially  as- 
serts the  affirmative  of  the  issue.  It  is  generally 
sufficient  to  oppose  a  direct  denial  to  a  direct 
allegation,  until  it  is  established  by  evidence, 
or  by  strong  collateral  circumstance?.  As  the 
party  in  the  affirmative  is  entitled  to  begin  and 
to  reply,  he  should  bring  forward  all  his  evi- 


120  CHURCH   TRIALS.  [Chap.  Y 

dence  before  any  defense  is  made.  The  rule 
seems  to  have  been  based  upon  the  fact  that,  in 
most  cases,  it  is  impossible  to  prove  a  negative 
arc  readily  and  explicitly  as  an  affirmative.  If 
a  man  has  indulged  in  the  use  of  ardent  spirits 
to  intoxication,  that  is  usually  susceptible  of 
proof;  but  it  might  be  exceedingly  difficult  for 
an  innocent  man  to  prove  that  he  was  not  in- 
toxicated on  a  given  day. 

5.  Fourthly.  The  best  evidence  should  be 
procured  of  which  the  nature  of  the  case  is 
susceptible.  This  rule  does  not  forbid  the  in- 
troduction of  testimony  of  different  degrees  of 
strength,  but  it  requires  that  strong  evidence 
should  not  be  withheld  when  it  is  known  to  be 
in  the  possession  of  the  party.  When  such 
testimony  is  withheld,  the  design  is  evidently 
fraudulent.  Oral  testimony  cannot  be  substi- 
tuted for  documentary,  when  such  testimony 
can  be  procured. 

^0  8.  Hearsay  evidence.     This  term  is  applied 

"^  /  both  to  written  and  to  oral  testimony,  and  re- 
lates to  such  as  does  not  derive  its  value  solely 
from  the  credit  given  to  the  witness  himself,  but 
rests  also,  in  part,  on  the  veracity  of  others. 
Hearsay  evidence  is  universally  held  as  incom- 


LT 


Sec  711.]  LAWS   OF   EVIDENCE.  121 

petent  to  establish  any  specific  fact  which  is 
susceptible  of  being  proved  by  living  witnesses. 
"If,"  says  Justice  Bnller,  "the  first  speech 
were  without  oath,  another  oath  that  there  was 
such  speech  makes  it  no  more  than  a  bare 
speaking,  and  so  of  no  value  in  a  court  of  jus- 
tice."- -Bull.  N.  P.,  294. 

7.  In  the  following  cases  hearsay  testimony 
is  received  in  civil  courts  : 

a.  In  matters  of  public  and  general  interest, 
where  the  health  or  happiness,  reputation  or 
prosperity,  of  the  whole  community  is  involved. 

J.  In  matters  of  ancient  possessions,  where  it 
is  supposed  that  no  original  witnesses  are  now 
living. 

c.  Declarations  and  entries  made  by  persons 
since  deceased,  and  against  the  interests  of  the 
persons    making   them   at  the  time  they  were 
made. 

d.  Dying  declarations  of  sane  persons. 

e.  The  testimony  of  deceased  witnesses,  given 
in  a  former  action  between  the  same  parties. 

SECTION  YII. —  Witne&ses. 
1.  The  Roman  law  required  the  evidence  of 
two  witnesses  as  the  foundation  of  a  decree.    In 
our  courts  one  witness,  if  his  testimony  is  cor- 


122  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V. 

roborated  by  strong  collateral  circumstances,  is 
sufficient  to  establish  facts.  In  ecclesiastical 
trials,  while  a  single  allegation,  rebutted  by  a 
positive  denial,  should  not  be  deemed  sufficient 
to  destroy  the  Christian  character  of  one  in 
whom  the  Church  had  reposed  the  fullest  confi- 
dence, yet  a  single  testimony,  corroborated  by 
strong  collateral  circumstances,  may  convince 
an  intelligent  committee  of  the  moral  certainty 
of  the  guilt  of  the  accused. 

2.  Common  law  forbids  that  a  party  to  the 
record  in  a  civil  suit  should  testify,  either  for 
himself  or  for  a  co-suitor  in  the  case  ;    and   the 
same  principle  holds  equally  good  in  all  ecclesi- 
astical examinations.     Nevertheless,  in  many  of 
the  States  statutes  have  been  enacted,  allowing 
parties  in  civil  suits,  and  even  those  charged 
with  having  committed  the   highest  crimes,  to 
testify  in  the  case,  the  tribunal  of  course  giving 
such   weight  to    the   testimony    as  may   seem 
proper    under   all    the   circumstances.     If  the 
complainant  has  no  other  interest  in  the  case 
than  is  common    to    all  the    members  of  the 
Church,  he  should  be  allowed  to  testify. 

3.  Neither  husband  nor  wife  can  testify  in 
any  civil  or  criminal  cause  in  which  one  of  them 


Sec.  VIL]  WITNESSES.  123 

is  a  party.  To  secure  domestic  happiness,  it  is 
held  that  neither  of  them  should  be  required  to 
divulge  any  confidential  communications  ob- 
tained by  the  hallowed  confidence  of  the  mar- 
riage relation.  No  other  relationship,  except 
that  of  husband  and  wife,  disqualifies  a  person 
from  testifying  for  or  against  another.  In  ec- 
clesiastical courts,  however,  the  husband  and 
wife  should  mutually  be  allowed  to  testify  for 
each  other,  and  the  committee  should  give  such 
weight  to  their  testimony  as  they  consider  it  is 
entitled  to. 

4.  Persons  deficient  in  understanding  are  in- 
competent witnesses. 

When  the  deaf  and  dumb  are  produced  in 
civil  courts,  it  must  be  shown  by  the  party  pro- 
ducing them  that  they  are  persons  of  sufficient 
understanding  to  give  testimony. 

In  regard  to  children,  there  is  no  precise  age 
within  which  they  are  absolutely  rejected.  At 
the  age  of  fourteen  it  is  presumed  that  every 
person  is  competent,  until  the  opposite  is  shown. 
Some  have  been  admitted  as  early  as  five  years 
of  age  to  testify  in  civil  courts. 

5.  Persons  insensible  to  the  obligations  of  an 
oath,  as  atheists,  and  those  made  infamous  by 


12J:  CEUKCH   TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

having  been  convicted  of  flagrant  crimes,  as  fel- 
ony, forgery,  perjury,  etc.,  are  deemed  incom- 
petent to  testify  before  a  civil  tribunal.  Nor 
should  they  be  listened  to  in  an  ecclesiastical 
investigation,  unless  their  statements  are  corrob- 
orated by  strong  collateral  circumstances,  or 
they  have  been  reformed  in  their  morals. 

6.  Persons  of  reputed  veracity  are  competent 
witnesses  in  a  Church  trial,  without  regard  to 
their  particular  religious  belief  or  Church  rela- 
tion.    "  Witnesses  from  without "  the  pale  of 
the  Church  "  shall  not  be  rejected." 

7.  The  presiding  officer  of  a  trial  must  deter- 
mine   the    competency  of    a   witness;  but   the 
society,  or   select   committee,    must  determine 
what  weight,   if  any,   should  be  given   to   the 
testimony. 

8.  Though  we  would  not  say  that  a  pastor  is 
not  a  competent  witness  against  any  of  his  flock, 
yet  we  would  repeat,  that  if  he  is  the  principal 
witness,  the  presiding  elder  should   put  another 
preacher  in  charge  to  preside  at  the  trial.     In 
civil  courts   the   same  person  cannot  be  both 
judge  and  witness.     If  another  judge  is  present 
and  presides,  a  judge  may  be  sworn  and  testify; 


Sec.  VIII.]  EXAMINATION.  125 

but  not  otherwise.  And  though  a  preacher  in 
charge  does  not  sustain  the  same  relation  to  an 
ecclesiastical  court  that  a  judge  does  to  a  2ivil, 
yet  there  are  so  marry  analogies  between  them 
that  it  is  ordinarily  inexpedient  that  the  same 
person  should  be  both  presiding  officer  of  the 
trial  and  a  witness. 

SECTION  VIII. — Examination  of  Witnesses. 

1.  Witnesses  are  to  be  examined  first  by  the 
party   producing  them,    and   afterward   cross- 
examined  by  the  opposite  party. 

2.  The  presiding  officer  may  order  that  the 
witnesses  be  examined  out  of  the  hearing  of 
each  other,  when  he  deems  it  essential  to  the 
discovery  of  truth. 

3.  Each  witness  should  be  called  upon  to  re- 
late what  he  knows  of  the  case,  and  his  testi- 
mony should  be  written,  and  to  insure  perfect 
accuracy  in  the  records,  read  to  him  as  taken 
by  the  secretary.     Every  question  and  answer 
should  be  written  which  either  party  deems  es- 
sential to  the  case. 

4.  Leading  questions  are  not  allowed  in  direct 
examination,  but  they  are  admissible  in  cross- 


126  CHURCH   TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

examination.  Leading  questions  are  those  which 
suggest  to  the  witness  the  desired  answer..  Ex- 
ample: Was  not  the  said  A B in 

M on  the  fourth  of  July  last?    Leading 

questions  are  permitted  in  direct  examination 
where  the  witness  appears  to  be  hostile  to  the 
party  producing  him,  and  where  an  omission  is 
evidently  caused  by  want  of  recollection. 

5.  A  witness  is  not  permitted  to  write  down 
his  testimony  to  read  in  court ;  but  he  is  per- 
mitted to  assist  his  memory  by  a  written  instru- 
ment or  memorandum.     It  is  not  necessary  that 
this  memorandum  should  have  been  made  by 
the  witness,  or  be  admissible  in  itself  as  evi- 
dence. 

6.  Witnesses  in  general  must  depose  to  such 
facts  only  as  are  within  their  own  knowledge. 
In  some  cases  persons  are  required  to  state  their 
opinions  or  belief.     Examples :  the  testimony 
of  medical  men,  whether  death  could  be  pro- 
duced by  certain  causes ;  whether  certain  cir- 
cumstances indicated  a  sane  or  insane  state  of 
mind  ;  the  testimony  of  skillful  penmen,  whether 
a  given  writing  were  the  veritable  chirograph  y 
of  a  particular  person.     Professional  books  are 
not  admissible  in  evidence. 


rfec  VIIL]  EXAMINATION.  127 

7.  A  witness,  while  giving  his  testimony,  may 
recall  and  correct  his  testimony ;  but  it  should 
be  taken  down  just  as  it  is  given,  with  all  its 
corrections  :  and  it  is  for  the  committee  to  de- 
cide whether  the  latter  statements   are   more 
worthy  of  belief  than  the  former. 

8.  All  exceptions  to   evidence  ought  to  be 
made  at  the  time  when  it  is  first  taken.     After 
the  verdict  it  is  too  late  to  take  an  exception. 

9.  Witnesses  in  civil  courts  are  not  compelled 
to  answer  any  questions  which  will  degrade  or 
expose  them -to  penal  liability;  but  as  our  ec- 
clesiastical courts  are  not  so  legalized  that  the 
witness  is  compelled  to  answer  any  question, 
this  subject  need  not  be  considered.     The  pre- 
siding officer  must  decide  whether  the  question 
is  a  proper  one. 

10.  If  no  counsel  appear  for  the  complainant, 
the  presiding  officer  should  put  such  questions 
as  may  be  necessary  to  elicit  the  truth,  guard- 
ing carefully  against  any  bias  toward  either 
party.     No  question  should  be  put  to  a  witness 
the  relevancy  of  which  does  not  appear. 

11.  A  witness  in  an  ecclesiastical  court  ought 
not  to  be  put  on  oath  :  it   can  accomplish  no 


128  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.   V 

good.  Such  oaths  are  extrajudicial,  and  not 
legally  binding.  No  oaths  are  held  by  the  civil 
law  to  be  obligatory  except  those  given  in 
some  proceeding  which  the  civil  law  recog- 
nizes. To  swear  falsely  before  a  court  in- 
competent to  administer  an  oath  is  not  perjury. 
(2  Caines,  91.) 

12.  Evidence  of  good  character  is  inadmissi- 
ble when  the  general  character  for  veracity  has 
not  been  impeached,  even  if  an  attempt  is  made 
to  prove  facts  inconsistent  with  the  statements 
of  the  witness. 

13.  A  witness  may  be  impeached  in  two  ways : 

a.  By  disproving  the  facts  stated  by  him  by 
the  testimony  of  other  witnesses. 

b.  By  general  evidence  affecting  his  credit  for 
veracity. 

"  In  impeaching  the  character  of  a  witness, 
[not  a  member  of  our  Church,]  it  is  not  allow- 
able to  impeach  his  general  moral  character, 
but  his  general  character  for  veracity,  and  that 
not  by  producing  testimony  of  particular  facts 
of  bad  moral  conduct,  but  by  producing  testi- 
mony as  to  the  general  fact  of  his  unreliability 
as  a  person  of  veracity." — Gen.  Conf.  Jour., 
I860,  p.  428. 


Sec.  IX.]  DEPOSITIONS.  12D 

The  general  character  of  a  member  of  our 
Church  for  veracity  cannot  be  impeached  ;  but 
the  facts  stated  by  him  may  be  disproved  by  the 
testimony  of  other  witnesses. 


SECTION  IX. — Depositions. 

1.  It  is  advisable,  in  all  cases  where  it  can  be 
done,  to  produce  all  material  witnesses  at  the 
trial.     But  as  no  ecclesiastical  jndicatory  can 
compel   the  presence    of   any  witness,   it   fre- 
quently becomes  necessary  to  take  depositions. 

2.  "  The  testimony  of  an  absent  witness  may 
be  taken  before  the  preacher  in  charge,  or  a 
preacher  appointed  by  the  presiding   elder  of 
the  district  within  which  such  witness  resides  ; 
provided,  in  every  case,  sufficient  notice  nas  been 
given  to  the  adverse  party  of  the  time  and  place 
of  taking  such  testimony." — Discipline,  "fl"  241. 
The  notice  should  state  the  hour  and  place  of 
taking  the  testimony,  and  be  delivered  to  the 
party  in  person,  or  left  at  his  usual  place  of 
residence.     A  notice  left  at  a  post-office  is  not 
sufficient,  if  it  was  not  received  by  the  party. 
What  time  is  a  reasonable  notice  to  the  adverse 
party  in  taking  depositions  is  not  fixed  by  the 
Discipline,  but  is  a  question  of  law  which  the 


130  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

presiding  officer  must  decide  ;  ordinarily  a  week, 
at  least,  should  be  allowed 

3.  Form  of  notice  : 

To  A.  B.  Whereas  C.  D.  has  requested  me 
to  take  the  deposition  of  E.  F.,  of  G.,  to  be  used 
in  the  examination  of  the  charges  and  specifica- 
tions preferred  against  you  by  C.  D.,  I  do, 
therefore,  appoint  the  second  day  of  June,  18 — , 
at  one  o'clock  P.  M..  at  the  house  of  the  said 
E.  F.,  as  the  time  and  place  for  the  said  person 
to  testify  what  he  knows  relative  to  matters 
contained  in  the  said  charges  and  specifications. 
And  you  are  hereby  notified,  that  you  may  then 
and  there  be  present,  and  put  such  interrogato- 
ries as  you  may  judge  fit. 

Yours,  etc.,         II.  K.,  Pastor. 

L ,  May  20,  18—. 

4.  Form  of  deposition  : 

I,  E.  F.,  of  G.,  testify  and  say  that . 

After  the  direct  testimony  of  the  deponent  is 
written,  the  party  taking  the  deposition  is  al- 
lowed, first,  to  examine  him  on  all  the  points 
which  he  deems  material ;  and  then  the  adverse 
party  may  examine  him  in  the  same  way.  After 
which  either  party  may  propose  such  other  in 
terrogatories  as  the  case  may  require. 


Sec.  IX.]  DEPOSITIONS.  131 

If  the.  accused  objects  to  the  admission  of  the 
person  to  testify  in  the  case,  this  should  be 
written  down,  stating  the  nature  of  the  ob- 
jection. 

If  any  question  is  objected  to  by  either  party, 
as  being  leading,  or  irrelevant,  or  hearsay,  or 
relating  to  matters  of  opinion,  this  should  be 
noted  under  the  question,  and  previous  to  the 
writing  of  the  answer. 

Ordinarily,  great  latitude  should  be  allowed 
to  the  questions,  if  desired  by  either  party ;  nor 
is  it  advisable,  usually,  at  this  stage  of  the  pro- 
ceedings, to  decide  on  the  validity  of  the  objec- 
tions, unless  in  very  clear  cases. 

After  the  deposition  is  written,  it  should  be 
read  to  the  deponent,  and  signed  by  him.  A 
note  should  be  appended  to  every  deposition, 
stating  the  reason  of  its  being  taken,  and 
whether  the  adverse  party  was  duly  notified 
and  attended. 

5.  Depositions  should  be  sealed  up  by  the 
person  taking  them,  and  remain   sealed  until 
opened  by  the  proper  authorities. 

6.  Depositions  should  be  rejected  if  it  appear 
that  the  opposite  party  was  not  notified  to  at- 
tend at  the  time  and  place  appointed  for  taking 


132  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

the  deposition,  or  that  a  sufficient  notice  was 
not  given,  or  that  he  was  notified  to  attend  at 
a  time  when  he  must  necessarily  be  absent,  or 
engaged  in  important  business  requiring  his 
personal  attention,  and  that  this  was  known  to 
the  party  giving  the  notice. 

7.  When  witnesses  are  present  at  the  seat  of 
the  conference,  but  refuse  to  give  evidence  in 
open  conference,  the  conference  has  a  right  to 
appoint  a  commission  to  take  their  testimony, 
the  opposite  party  being  notified  to  appear  be- 
fore such  commission,  and  having  the  right  to 
cross-examine  the  witnesses.     In  such  cases  the 
testimony  is  to  be   taken    by  a   secretary  ap- 
pointed  by   the    commission ;    and,   when    re- 
ported to  the  conference,  it  must  be  filed  and 
carefully  preserved    by   the   secretary   of  that 
body. 

8.  When  only  a  part  of  a  deposition  is  de- 
sired to  be  used  in  a  trial,  the  whole  of  it  must 
be  read. 

SECTION  X. — Appeal. 

1.  The  privilege  of  appeal  is  allowed  both  to 
preachers  and  members  by  the  constitution  of 
our  Church,  under  certain  limitations.  The 


Sec.  X.1  APPEAL.  ]  33 

General  Conference  "  shall  not  do  away  the 
privileges  of  our  ministers  and  preachers  01  trial 
by  a  committee,  and  of  an  appeal :  neither  shall 
they  do  away  the  privileges  of  our  members  of 
trial  before  the  society,  or  by  a  committee,  and 
of  an  appeal."  It  is  required,  however,  in  or- 
der that  the  appeal  may  be  entertained,  that  the 
condemned  person  signify  his  intention  to  ap- 
peal within  a  given  time. 

2.  The  court  appealed  to,  and  not  the  court 
appealed  from,  is  to  judge  whether  or  not  the 
party  has  a  right  to  appeal.     As  the  right  of 
appeal  is  not  treated  in  the  Restrictive  Rules  as 
a  conditional  one  to  be  regulated  by  express  en- 
actments, great  license  should  be  given  to  this 
right.     No   appeal  should   be    rejected    unless 
there  are  very  manifest  reasons -for  it.     It  has 
never  been  considered,  however,  that  the  appel- 
late court  can  exercise  no  discretion  in  any  case 
of  appeal, — that  it  must  entertain  every  appeal 
that  is  made  to  it. 

3.  If  an  accused  person  evades  a  trial  by  ab- 
senting himself  after  sufficient  notice  has  been 
given  him,  and  the  committee  judge  that  the 
circumstances  of  the  accusation  afford  strong 
presumption  of  guilt,  he  may  be  esteemed  as 


134  CHtTRCH   TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

guilty,  and  be  accordingly  excluded.  And  a 
person  who  absents  himself  from  trial  can  claim 
no  right  to  an  appeal.  But  mere  absence  from 
the  place  of  trial  does  not  show  that  the  accused 
person  evaded  a  trial  by  absenting  himself,  in 
the  sense  of  the  Discipline.  He  should  be  al- 
lowed to  show  to  the  quarterly  conference  that 
his  absence  from  the  trial  was  not  designed,  nor 
a  fault  on  his  part.  If  a  majority  of  the  quar- 
terly conference  are  convinced  that  he  did  not 
designedly  evade  a  trial,  the  appeal  should  be 
entertained. 

4.  "  When  a  member  of  an  annual  conference 
gives  notice  to  the  conference  that  he  has  with- 
drawn from  the  Church  or  conference,  and  at 
the  same  time  there  be  charges  ready  to  be  pre- 
sented against  him,  and  he  has  knowledge  of 
such  charges  previous   to  his   notice   of  with- 
drawal, and  he  has  been  marked  upon  the  jour- 
nal of  the  annual  conference  as  withdrawn  un- 
der  charges,    has    such    member   the    right   to 
appeal  to  the  General  [now  Judicial]  Conference 
from  snch  record  of  the  annual  conference? 

"Answer.  He  has  not." — Gen.  Conf.  Jour., 
I860,  p.  298. 

5.  No  appeal  of  an  excluded  member  can  be 
entertained,  unless  it  is  brought  before  the  next 


Sec   X.]  APPEAL.  135 

ensuing  quarterly  conference ;  or  of  a  local 
preacher,  unless  lie  signify  to  the  district  or  quar- 
terly conference,  as  the  case  may  be,  his  deter- 
mination to  appeal  to  the  next  annual  confer- 
ence ;  or  of  a  traveling  preacher,  unless  he  signify 
his  intention  to  appeal  to  the  judicial  conference 
at  the  time  of  his  condemnation,  or  at  any  subse- 
quent time  when  he  is  informed  of  it.  The 
General  Conference  of  1860  adopted  the  follow- 
ing decision  : 

"  When  an  expelled  member  has,  by  neglect 
or  otherwise,  forfeited  his  right  of  appeal,  may 
a  subsequent  quarterly  conference,  if  it  desire 
to  do  so,  grant  him  the  privilege  of  an  appeal  2 

"Answer.  No."— Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  p.  298. 

6.  No    district  or  quarterly  conference   can 
try  an  appeal  w'  en  the  testimony  is  not  duly 
recorded.      When    accurate  minutes  have  not 
been  taken  in  the  trial  before  the  society,  or  a 
select  number,  "  the  case,"  says  Bishop  Hedding, 
"  should  be  referred  back  for  a  new  trial,  that 
those  who  did  their  work  carelessly,  at  first, 
may  have  opportunity  of  doing   it   properly, 
and  of  being  admonished  to  avoid  such  errors 
afterward." 

7.  In  case  a  local  preacher  appeals  to   the 
annual   conference,   and  it   is    found  that   the 


136  CHURCH   TRIALS.  [Chap.  \, 

minutes  of  the  trial  were  not  signed  by  the 
president  of  the  conference  by  which  ,he  was 
Hed,  and  by  a  majority  of  the  members  of  the 
conference  who  were  present,  the  appeal  cannot 
be  entertained.  When  the  Discipline  has  been 
illegally  administered,  the  case  should  be  re- 
manded to  the  tribunal  holding  original  juris- 
diction over  the  member,  for  a  new  trial. 
(Bishop  Soule.) 

8.  Mode  of  conducting  appeals  in  the  Gen- 
eral [now  Judicial]  Conference. 

(1.)  Present  the  appeal. 

(2.)  Determine  what  members  of  the  Com- 
mittee on  Appeals,  not  less  than  thirteen,  shall 
hear  and  try  the  case — a  majority  of  whom  shall 
decide. 

(3.)  Read  the  findings  in  the  case. 

(4.)  State  the  grounds  of  the  appeal. 

(5.)  Motion  to  admit  the  appeal. 

(6.)  Read  the  minutes  and  documents. 

(7.)  Appellant's  defense. 

(8.)  Reply  of  the  delegates  of  the  conference 
from  whose  action  the  appeal  is  taken. 

(9.)  Appellant's  reply  to  the  delegates. 

(10.)  Decision  of  the  case. 

9.  The  motion  to  admit  the  appeal  is  put  to 
the  court,  that  if  the  appellant  is  not  entitled  to 


See.  X.] 


APPEAL.  137 


an  appeal  the  facts  of  the  case  may  be  presented. 
In  the  following  cases  appeals  may  not  be 
entertained : 

a.  When  the  accused  absents  himself  from 
trial  in  a  strictly  disciplinary  sense.  (Discipline, 
1  251.) 

J.  When  he  does 'not  signify  his  intention  to 
appeal  within  the  specified  time.  (Discipline, 
f  232, 257,  258.  Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1360,  p.  298.) 

c.  When  no  censure  or  reproof  was  adminis- 
tered as  a  penalty,  and  the  conference  passed 
the  character  of  the  appellant  without  censure, 
and  simply  declared  that  he  erred  in  judgment 
in  the  administration  of  Discipline.  (Gen.  Conf. 
Jour.,  1840,  pp.  82,  83.) 

d.  When  the  appellant  declares  himself  with- 
drawn   from    the   Church    subsequent    to    the 
adjudication  of  his  case  and  the  avowal  of  his 
intention  to  appeal.    (Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1848, 
p.  38.) 

e.  If  a  member  of  an  annual  conference  gives 
notice  to  the  conference  that  he  has  withdrawn 
from  the  Church  or  conference,  and  at  the  same 
time  there  are  charges  ready  to  be  preferred 
against  him,  and   he   has   knowledge  of  such 
charges  previous  to  his  notice  of  withdrawal,  if 
the  conference  should  enter  upon  its  journal  that 
he  withdrew  under  charges,  he  could  claim  no 


138  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

right  to  appeal  from  such  record  to  the  judicial 
conference.  (Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1860,  pp.  223, 
298.) 

f.  When  an  expelled  preacher  does  not  sub- 
mit to  the  decision  of  the  conference,  but  con- 
tinues to  preach  as  if  still  in  full  possession  of 
ministerial  powers,  and  has  connected  himself 
with  another  Church  or  organization  contem- 
plating church  ends  independent  of  and  hostile 
to  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  he  is  not 
entitled  to  an  appeal.  (Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1800, 
p.  253.) 

But  in  all  cases  where  the  right  of  appeal  has 
not  been  lost  by  some  violation  of  the  pro- 
visions of  the  Discipline,  the  appeal  must  be 
entertained. 

10.  If  an  appeal  is  well  taken,  it  does  not 
place  the  case  wholly  within  the  jurisdiction  of 
the  appellate  court  to  make  such  an  award  as  it 
deems  proper ;    but    the   appellate  court  must 
either  affirm  or  reverse  the  decision  of  the  court 
below,   or  remand   the  case   for  a  new  trial. 
(Bishops  Janes  and  Baker.) 

11.  Decisions  in  an  appellate  court : 

"  In  any  ecclesiastical  court  of  appeals,  wher, 
the  three  questions,  Shall  the  decision  of  the 


Sec.  X.]  APPEAL.  139 

lower  court  be  affirmed  ?  Shall  the  case  be  re- 
manded for  a  new  trial?  Shall  the  former  decis- 
sion  be  reversed  ?  have  been  successively  put, 
and  there  is  a  tie  vote  on  each,  then  in  what 
condition  does  it  leave  the  appellant  ? 

"  Resolved,  That  it  is  the  sense  of  this  confer- 
ence that  when  the  motions  to  affirm,  to  remand, 
and  to  reverse  have  been  successively  pnt  and  lost, 
the  decision  of  the  court  below  stands  as  the 
final  adjudication  of  the  case." — Gen.  Conf. 
Jour.,  1860,  p.  248. 

12.  In  no  case  of  appeal  can  new  evidence  be 
admitted.    Only  the  journalized  and  document- 
ary testimony  taken  and  presented  at  the  first 
trial  can  be  introduced.  (Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1848, 
p.  127.)     If  the  appellant  affirms  that  he  has  in 
his  possession  testimony  which  was  not  before 
the  original  court,  and  which,  in  his  opinion, 
would  exculpate  him  from  one  or  more  charges 
on  which  he  was  expelled,  the  case  may  be  re- 
manded for  a  new   trial.     (Gen.  Conf.  Jour., 
1840,  p.  77.)* 

13.  Relation  of  an  expelled  member  whose 
case  has  been  remanded  by  the  appellate  court: 

"  When  an  appeal  is  taken  by  an  expelled 
member  to  the  quarterly  conference,  and  the 

*  For  further  Disciplinary  action  on  Appeals  see  pp.242-245. 


140  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Cnap.  V, 

conference  remands  the  case  for  a  new  trial, 
what  is  the  precise  relation  of  the  appellant  ? 
Is  he  an  accused  member,  and  must  the  preach- 
er proceed  to  try  him  again,  or  is  lie  restored  to 
his  membership  in  good  standing  ? 

Ans.  He  is  an  accused  member,  and  the 
preacher  "  shall  proceed  to  try  him  again  unless 
the  charges  are  withdrawn." — See  Discipline, 
1243. 

14.  After  a  member  has  been  tried,  expelled, 
and  taken  an  appeal,  and  the  quarterly  confer- 
ence has  affirmed  the  decision  of  the  court  be- 
low, a  succeeding  quarterly  conference  is  not 
competent  to  reopen  the  case  for  adjudication, 
by  granting  another  trial  to  the  expelled  mem- 
ber.    The  decision    of  the   appellate  court   is 
final.     (Bishop  Hedding.) 

15.  When  the  appellate  court  reverses  the 
decision  of   the  court   below,  the  appellant  is 
reinstated  in  his  former  membership,  without 
any  action  of  the  court  from  which  he  took  an 
appeal. 

16.  If    an   excluded    steward,    exhorter,    or 
class-leader  is  restored  to   membership  by  the 
quarterly    conference,    such    action    does    not 


Sec.  X.J  APPEAL.  141 

restore  him  to  his  previous  official  relation. 
He  is  brought  to  trial  as  if  he  had  sustained  no 
official  relation ;  and  a  quarterly  conference 
can  restore  no  office  which  it  is  not  originally 
empowered  to  give. 

17.  When    a   decision   on   a  point  of  law  is 
made  by  a  presiding  elder  in  a  district  or  quar 
terly  conference,  and  action  follows  which  affects 
the  membership  of  a  member  of  that  confer- 
once,  such  action  is  final,  provided  that  no  ap- 
peal   is    taken    to    the   president  of  the   next 
annual  conference.  (Bishop  Hamline.) 

18.  No    accused   lay   member    can   take   an 
appeal  until  he  is  excluded  from  the  Church. 
But  when  he  is  once   expelled,  the  act  of  ex- 
pulsion stands  until  the  decision  is  reversed,  on 
appeal,  by  the  quarterly  conference.     The  per- 
son thus  expelled,  though  he  takes  an  appeal, 
cannot  enjoy  any  privileges  of  society  until  the 
decision    of  the   appellate   court.     And   if  the 
quarterly  report  be  read  before  the  appeal  is 
tried,  and  the  decision  reversed,  the  preacher  in 
charge  is  bound  to  read  him  out  among  those 
excluded  from    the  Church    according  to  Dis- 
cipline.    If  the   decision    is  reversed  by    the 
quarterly   conference,   the  preacher  in  charge 


14:2  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

should  announce  before  the  society  that  the 
person  is  restored  to  membership  by  the  .act  of 
the  quarterly  conference.  (Bishop  Morris.) 

19.  When  an  appeal   is  taken  from  the  de- 
cision of  an  ecclesiastical  court,  that  fact  should 
be  entered  upon  tiie  records  of  the  trial ;  and 
the  presiding  officer  is  required  to  present  such 
records,  and  all  the  documents  relating  to  the 
case,  to  the  appellate  court.     When  a  traveling 
preacher,    however,    has   been   tried,    and    has 
taken  an  appeal,  it  is  the  duty  of  the  secretary 
of  the  annual   conference  to  preserve  the  min- 
utes of  the  trial,  and  all  the  documents  relating 
to  it,  and  transmit  them,  at  the  proper  time,  to 
the  judicial  conference. 

20.  When  an  appellant  does  not  appear  per- 
sonally, or  by  a  representative,  to  prosecute  his 
appeal,  it  goes  by  default.  (Bishop  Ames.) 

21.  If  in  the  examination  of  an   appeal  the 
presiding  elder   discover  that   the  trial  below 
was  informally  conducted,  he  has  no  authority 
to  throw  out  the  case,  prevent  the  decision  of 
the  conference,    and    declare    the   person   not 
expelled.      The  appeal  is  not  to  the  presiding 
elder,  but  to  the  quarterly  conference. 


Sec.  XL]  CHURCH   TRIALS.  143 

22.  If,  in  the  judgment  of  the  presiding  elder, 
oeeause  of  local  prejudice  an  impartial  trial  can- 
not be  had  in  the  quarterly  conference  of  the 
circuit  or  station  where  the  appellant  resides,  he 
may,  on  the  demand  of  either  party,  cause  the 
appeal  to  be  tried  by  any  other  quarterly  con- 
ference within  his  district,  after  due  notice  to 
the  complainant  and  appellant. 

SECTION  XI. — New  Trial. 

1.  It  is  not  in  accordance  with  our  usages  for 
a  presiding  officer  to  order,  under  any  circum- 
stances, a  new   trial ;  but   an    appellate   court 
may  remand  an  appeal  case  for  a  new  trial. 

2.  If  the  preacher  in  charge  differs  in  judg- 
ment from  the  majority  of  the  society,  or  the 
select    number,  concerning   the    guilt  or  inno- 
cence of  an  accused  member,  the  trial  may  be 
referred,  by  the  preacher  in  charge,  to  the  ensu- 
ing quarterly  conference.     But   this   reference 
of  the  trial  does  not  place  the  case  before  the 
quarterly   conference   for    adjudication ;    it    is 
simply  a  petition  for  a  new  trial,  and  the  quar- 
terly conference  may  grant  or  reject  it  accord- 
ing to  their  best  judgment.  (Disc.,H  242, 243.) 

3.  When    the   case   is   remanded   for    a  new 
trial,  it  should  proceed  as  if  no  trial  had  pro 


144  CHURCH   TRIALS.  [Chap.  IV. 

viously  been  held.  There  must  be  a  new  pres- 
entation of  charges  and  specifications,  a  new 
notifying  of  the  party,  hearing  of  witnesses,  and 
rendering  of  verdict.  Any  of  the  original 
charges  and  specifications  may  be  withdrawn, 
and  new  charges  and  specifications  may  be 
added.  New  evidence  may  be  produced,  and 
such  documentary  testimony  as  has  been  taken 
according  to  Discipline,  and  admitted  in  the 
first  trial,  may  be  introduced  in  the  new  trial 
(Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1848,  p.  129.) 

It  would  be  a  flagrant  proceeding  for  the 
adjudicating  body,  when  a  case  is  remanded  for 
a  new  trial,  to  re-expel  a  member  on  a  verdict 
of  guilt  rendered  at  a  previous  trial,  without  a 
new  hearing  of  testimony.  (Bishop  Hedding.) 

4.  In  the  following  cases  it  would  be  highly 
proper  for  the  appellate  court  to  grant  a  new 
trial. 

a.  When  the  minutes  of  the  trial  are  so  im- 
perfect that  the  true  merits  of  the  case  cannot 
be  learned  from  them. 

5.  In  case  of  maladministration,  or  incorrect 
ruling  of  the  presiding  officer. 

c.  When  there  have  been  any  improprieties 
in  the  select  committee,  such  as  determining 
their  verdict  by  casting  lots,  or  by  basing  it 


Sec.  XII.]  LOCAL   PREACHEES.  145 

upon  documents  which  were  sent  to  them,  but 
were  not  .read  in  the  trial. 

d.  "When  new  and  material  evidence  has  been 
discovered.  A  new  trial  should  not  be  granted 
for  mere  cumulative  evidence. 

SECTION  XII.  —  Trial  of  Local  Preachers. 

1.  A    local   preacher,   deacon,   or   elder,   is 
amenable  to  the  district  conference,  where  one 
is  held,  otherwise  to  the  quarterly  conference, 
for  the  faithful  performance  of  the  functions  of 
5iis  office;  and  in  case  of  manifest  neglect  of 
duty  should  be  treated  the  same  as  in  cases  of 
improper   tempers,  words,    and    actions.      The 
person  thus  offending  should  be  reprehended  by 
his  senior  in  office;  and  should  he  fail  to  re- 
form, one,  two,  or  three  faithful  friends  should 
be  taken  as  witnesses.     If  he  etill  persists  in  his 
neglect  of  duty,  the  conference  may  proceed  to 
try  him,  and    deprive   him   of  his   ministerial 
office. 

2.  When  a  local  elder,  deacon,  or  preacher  is 
reported  to  be  guilty  of  some  crime  expressly 
forbidden  in  the  word  of  God,  it  is  made  the 
duty    of  the   preacher  in   charge   to   call    him 
before  a  committee  of  local  preachers,  by  whom 
he  shall  be  acquitted,  or,  if  found  guilty,  sus- 

10 


146  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.V. 

pended  until  the  next  district  or  quarterly  con- 
ference, as  the  case  may  be.  The  rule  "  re- 
quires the  preacher  in  charge,"  says  Bishop  Mor- 
ris, "  to  proceed  on  mere  report  ^  whether  there  be 
any  formal  charges  or  not;  to  call  a  committee, 
which  is  of  the  nature  of  a  court  of  inquiry, 
to  ascertain  whether  or  not  there  be  cause  of 
trial ;  and  if  so,  it  must  go  to  the  district  or  the 
quarterly  conference,  as  the  case  may  be,  the 
only  tribunal  that  has  authority  to  try  the  case. 
And  in  all  practicable  cases  the  preacher  in 
charge  should  inquire  into  complaints  against 
local  preachers,  by  a  committee,  before  they 
come  into  the  conference,  or  be  held  -responsible 
for  this  neglect  of  duty.  But  if  he  neglect  it,  or 
fail  to  obtain  a  committee,  or  fail  for  want  of 
time,  that  neglect  or  failure  does  not  deprive 
the  conference  of  its  legal  authority  to  try  a  local 
preacher  on  charges  of  immorality." 

3.  Bishop  Hedding  remarks :  "  Great  care 
should  be  taken  to  appoint  a  wise,  prudent,  and 
impartial  committee,  consisting,  if  practicable, 
of  more  than  three.  All  suitable  means  should 
be  employed  to  have  a  thorough  and  fair  inves- 
tigation. And  as  the  final  trial  of  a  local 
preacher  is  by  a  body  of  men  most  of  whom  are 
usually  laymen,  it  is  desirable  that  this  com- 


•Sec.  X1L]  LOCAL   PREACHEKS.  147 

mittee  should  be  composed  of  as  many  as  seven 
or  nine." 


4.  The  committee  of  local  preachers  may  be 
sailed  from  any  circuit  or  district  in  the  con- 
ference.    The  rule  of  1796  required  that  the 
local  preachers  in  the  neighborhood  should  be 
called  to  constitute  this  committee.     In  1820 
they  were  required  to  belong  to  the  circuit  or 
district.     In  1836  all  restrictions  in  this  respect 
were  taken  away. 

5.  The  mode  of  conducting  an  investigation 
by  a  committee,  in  the  case  of  an  accused  local 
preacher,  is  similar  to   that   of  the   trial  of  a 
member   before    described.      The   preacher  in 
charge  must  preside,  and  cause  exact  minutes 
of  the    charges,   specifications,  testimony,  and 
examination  to  be  taken ;  and  if  the  accused  is 
found  guilty,  these,  together  with  the  decision 
of  the  committee,  must  be  laid  by  him  before 
the  district  conference  where  one  is  held,  other- 
wise before  the  quarterly  conference. 

6.  The   acquittal   or  suspension   of  a  local 
preacher,  in  the  primary  examination,  is  by  the 
committee,  and  not  by  the  preacher  in  charge. 


148  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.V, 

7.  The  examination   before  a  committee    is 
not  a  trial  proper  on  the  merits  of  the  case  ; 
and  hence,  if  a  local  preacher  is  acquitted  by  the 
committee,  charges  and  specifications,  founded 
upon  the  same  reports,  may  be  preferred  against 
him    at   the   district  conference   where   one    is 
held,   otherwise    at   the   quarterly   conference, 
and  he  be  expelled,  if  they  judge  him  guilty  of 
crime. 

8.  The  mode  of  conducting  the  trial  of  a  local 
preacher  is  the  same  as  that  above  described. 
The  president  must  appoint  a  secretary  to  take 
regular  minutes  of  the  evidence  of  the  trial  ; 
"  which    minutes,   when    read   and    approved, 
shall  be  signed  by  the  president,  and  also  by  the 
members  of  the  conference  who  are  present,  or 
by  a  majority  of  them." 

9.  The  district  conference,  where  one  is  held, 
or,  if  no  such  conference  be  held,  then  the  quar- 
terly conference,  holds  original  jurisdiction  over 
local  preachers,  and  hence  its  decision  will  not 
be  governed  by  the  primary  investigation.    Tes- 
timony may,  in  first  examinations,  have  been 
rejected  which  the  president  of  the  quarterly 
conference  judges  to  be  admissible  ,  and  testi- 
mony may  have  been  admitted  which  should  be 


Sec.  XII.J  LOCAL    PREACHERS.  149 

rejected.    Any  additional  testimony  which  either 
party  may  have  obtained  may  be  presented. 

10.  If  the  accused  refuse  or  neglect  to  appear, 
either  before  the  investigating  committee  or  the 
conference,  he  may  be  tried  in  his  absence. 

11.  The  conference  having  jurisdiction  alone 
awards  punishment  in  the  trial  of  local  preach- 
ers.    Suspension  by  the  investigating  committee 
is  not  a  penalty  judicially  awarded,  but  a  public 
arrest  of  character  until  the  case  can  be  exam- 
ined before  the  proper  tribunal.     The  president 
cannot  expel  a  local  preacher ;  he  merely  an- 
nounces the  decision  of  the  conference. 

12.  If  a  local  preacher  has  been  expelled,  and 
has  taken  an  appeal  to  the  annual  conference,  a 
subsequent  district  or  quarterly  conference  can- 
not reconsider  its  action,  and  restore  the  local 
preacher.     If  a  subsequent  conference  should 
reconsider  the  act  of  a  former  session,  and  re- 
store one  whom  they  had  expelled,  for  the  same 
reason  they  might  reconsider  and  condemn  a 
man  whom  they  had  previously  acquitted.    And 
if  they  could  reconsider  the  act  of  the  last  con- 
ference, they  might  reconsider  an    act  passed 
years  before.  (Bishop  Hedding.) 


150  CHURCH   TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

13.  When  a  local  preacher  has  been  brought 
to  trial  before  a  district  or  a  quarterly  confer- 
ence, and  the  evidence  has  been  taken,  and  the 
pleadings  closed,  it  is  not  lawful  for  the  confer- 
ence to  adjourn,  and  leave  the  decision  of  the 
case  to  the  next  conference. 

14.  A  district  or  a  quarterly  conference  has 
no  authority  to  alter  the  language  of  any  charge' 
or  specification  without  the  consent  of  the  par- 
ties. 

15.  When  the  property  of  a  local  preacher 
has  accumulated  so  rapidly  as  to  cause  some  to 
suspect  that  he  is  not  acquiring  it  honestly,  the 
district  or  the  quarterly  conference,  of  which  he 
is  a  member,  has  no  authority  to  demand  of  him 
a  statement  of  the  amount  of  his  property,  and 
of  the  manner  in  which  it  has  been  acquired. 
If  he  is  suspected  of  dishonesty,  he  may  be  ar- 
raigned ;  but  the  accuser  must  produce  testi- 
mony to  sustain  the  charge.     No  man  can  bo 
compelled    to    witness   against    himself.    (Ref. 
Bishop  Soule.) 

16.  When  the  matters  involved  in  a  bill  of 
charges,  presented  against  a  member,  local  or 
traveling  preacher,  in  whole  or  any  material 


Soot  XII.]  LOCAL  PREACHERS.  151 

part,  are  pending  before  a  civil  or  criminal 
court,  it  is  frequently  advisable  to  lay  the  case 
over  until  the  trial  is  decided  by  the  legal  tri- 
bunal. Equity  seems  to  demand  it.  If  in  this 
case  the  local  preacher  has  been  suspended  by 
a  committee,  and  the  case  is  brought  before 
the  ensuing  district  or  quarterly  conference  for 
trial, — if  the  conference  believe  that  the  charges 
cannot  be  fully  investigated  until  after  the  suits 
pending  before  the  civil  tribunals  are  termi- 
nated,— it  is  competent  to  adjourn  the  case  until 
after  such  trial.  The  results,  however,  of  a  crim- 
inal prosecution  ought  not  to  exert  any  influence 
on  the  results  of  the  ecclesiastical  investigation. 
Equity  and  the  honor  of  the  Church  might  de- 
mand the  conviction  and  expulsion  of  the  per- 
son whom  the  civil  law  had  cleared. 

17.  The  fact  that  a  member  of  a  quarterly 
conference  has  been  employed  as  counsel  in  a 
civil  suit  against  a  local  preacher  does  not  dis- 
.qualify  him  from  acting  and  voting  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  district  or  the  quarterly  conference, 
in  the  trial  of  the  local  preacher  on  charges 
involving  the  material  facts  pending  in  the  civil 
court.  Every  member  of  a  district  or  of  a  quar- 
terly conference,  except  while  he  himself  is  being 
tried,  may  exercise  every  right,  and  perform 


]  52  CHURCH   TKIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

every  act  appertaining  to  his  office,  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  conference,  if  it  has  no  respect  to  his 
own  personal  interests. 

18.  When   charges   are   preferred  against   a 
preacher  on  trial,  the  presiding  elder  has  a  right, 
to  decide  under  which  provision  of  ^^  223-229 
of  the  Discipline  the  case  shall  be  tried. 


SECTION  XIII.— Trial  of  Traveling  Preachers. 

1.  The  nature  of  the  investigation  of  an  ac- 
cused  traveling  preacher,  by  a  committee,  in 
the  interval  of  an  annual  conference,  is  the  same 
as  that  of  a  local   preacher,  above  described. 
It  is  strictly  preliminary  in  its  character.     The 
committee  can  merely  suspend  from  ministerial 
services  and  Church  privileges  until  the  ensuing 
annual  conference. 

2.  "  The  great  object  of  committees  is  to  at- 
tend to  complaints,  or  charges,  in  the  intervals 
of  conferences,  and  thereby  secure  the  character 
of  innocent  brethren,  wrongfully  accused,  from 
reproach  and  injury ;  or  [of  saving  the  Church 
from  harm]  by  suspending  [such  as  are  adjudged 
guilty]  until   the  ensuing  conference.     And  it 
may  be  further  remarked  that  neither  the  or- 


Sec.  XIII ]         TRAVELING    PREACHERS.  153 

ganization  of  a  committee,  nor  any  of  their  acts, 
can  abridge  the  powers  of  a  conference,  when 
they  afterward  come  to  sit  on  the  same  case. 
And  should  a  case  occur  at  or  during  the  sit- 
ting of  a  conference,  or.  although  known  of,  be 
neglected  ;  or,  if  it  should  be  of  such  recent 
date  as  not  to  afford  time  to  call  a  committee, 
and  should  then  be  brought  before  the  confer- 
ence, there  is  nothing  in  the  Discipline,  or  rea- 
son, to  prevent  the  conference  from  hearing  and 
deciding  thereon,  without  the  intervention  of  a 
committee  ;  and  especially  if  the  person  accused 
desire  it.  But  as  the  conference  has  the  entire 
control  of  all  cases  in  which  its  own  members 
are  concerned,  subject  to  the  order  of  Discipline, 
they  may,  or  they  may  not,  appoint  a  commit- 
tee, as  they  may  judge  proper." — M' 'JZendree. 

The  Restrictive  Rules  provide  that  ministers 
or  preachers  shall  have  the  privilege  "  of  trial 
by  a  committee."  This  implies  that  preachers 
shall  not  be  suspended  in  the  interval  of  confer- 
ence, as  they  formerly  were,  without  the  inves- 
tigation and  action  of  a  committee;  but  it  was 
not  intended  to  abridge  the  powers  ot  an  annual 
conference, — it  has  original  jurisdiction  over  its 
members. 

3.  If  the  charge  be  preferred  at  the  confer- 


154  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V 

ence,  the  case  may  be  referred  to  a  committee, 
in  the  presence  of  a  presiding  elder,  or  a  mem- 
ber, appointed  by  the  bishop  in  his  stead.  In 
the  latter  case,  the  person  so  appointed  possesses 
all  the  powers  of  a  presiding  elder  in  an  investi- 
gating committee. 

4.  An  annual  conference  has  a  right,  when 
charges  are  preferred  against  one  of  its  number, 
and  the  case  cannot  be  tried  during  its  session, 
for  want  of  testimony,  to  refer  it  to  the  presid- 
ing elder  who  may  have  charge  of  him,  under 
the  rule  for  the  trial  of  immoral  ministers,  in  the 
interval  of  an  annual  conference.     When  cases 
are  thus  referred,  the  committee  possesses  no 
more  authority  than  when   it  is  called,  in  the 
interval  of  conference,  by  the  presiding  elder. 
It  can  only  suspend  ;   and  the  ensuing  annual 
conference    must    determine    the    case.     If   a 
specific  charge  only  is  referred,  the  committee 
must  restrict   its  examination  to  that  particu- 
lar point ;  but  if  the  case  of  a  preacher  is  refer- 
red, the  committee   may  examine  any  charge 
which  may  be  preferred  against  him. 

5.  The    acquittal   of    an    accused    traveling 
preacher  by  the  investigating  committee,  as  in 
the  case  of  a  local  preacher,  does  not  prevent 


boc    XIII.]        TRAVELING   PREACHEKS.  155 

the  same  charges  being  prefeired,  and  a  trial 
held  before  the  annual  conference,  to  which  he 
is  originally  amenable. 

6.  If  the    preacher  is  found   guilty  by  the  J 
committee,  he  must  be  suspended  by  it,  and  not  / 
by  the  presiding  elder.     The  penitence  of  the  / 
convicted  cannot  prevent  suspension. 

7.  If  a  committee  is  appointed  to  investigate 
the  case  of  an  accused  preacher,  and  report  to 
the  next  conference,  if  the  conference  is  divided, 
and  the  committee  falls  into  different   confer- 
ences, its  powers  remain  the  same  until  its  re- 
port is  heard  and  accepted. 

8.  When  a  presiding  elder  is  called  to  preside 
at  the    investigation    of  an   accused   presiding 
elder,  he   possesses  the  same   powers  as  when 
investigating  the  case  of  an  accused  traveling 
preacher  on  his  district.     He  may  appoint  the 
committee,  and  the  time  and  place  of  holding 
the   investigation.     The   committee  should    be 
called  from  the  district  of  the  accused  presiding 
elder,  unless  special  reasons  exist  why  it  should 
not  be  done. 

9.  A  presiding  elder  may  appoint  the  place 
for  the  investigation  of  the  case  of  an  accused 


1.56  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  \7, 

traveling  preacher  beyond  the  limits  of  his 
district,  when,  in  his  judgment,  the  circum- 
stances demand  it. 

10.  A  presiding  elder  cannot  call  a  traveling 
,    preacher  before  an  investigating  committee,  ex- 
cept (1)  when    he  "  is    under    report   of  being 
guilty  of  some  crime  expressly  forbidden  in  the 

vv  word  of  God  as  an  unchristian  practice,  sufficient 

\  to  exclude  a  person  from  the  kingdom  of  grace 

and  glory ;"  or  (2)  when  he  is  not  "  cured  "  of 

1   improper  tempers,  words,  or  actions  on  the  first 

|    and  second  admonition  :  or  (3)  when  he  "holds 

and  disseminates  doctrines  which  are  contrary  to- 

our  Articles  of  Religion,"  and  will   not  •'  sol- 

S    emnly  engage  not  to  disseminate  such  erroneous 

doctrines,  in  public  or  in  private  ;"  or  (4)  when 

he  ceases  to  travel  without  the  consent  of  the 

annual    conference.     Complaints  of  maladmin- 

i   istration   must  go  primarily  before  the   annual 

•    conference.    (Discipline,  T  220.)    The  presiding 

eider  can  only  remove  such  from  the  charge  as 

do  not  administer  Discipline  correctly. 

t 

11.  The  form  of  trial,  in  the  case  of  a  local  or 
traveling   preacher,  is    the    same   as   that  of  a 
member,  except  in   the  mode  of  rendering  the 
verdict.     The  quarterly  and  annual  conferences 


Sec.  XIII.]         TRAVELING   PREACHERS.  157 

vote  first  upon  the  question  whether  the  sev- 
eral specifications,  in  order,  under  each  charge, 
are  sustained,  and  then  upon  the  charge,  with- 
out bringing  in  a  written  verdict. 

12.  If  an  accused  traveling  preacher  does  not 
appear,  either   before    the    committee   or  the 
annual  conference,  the  same   formality  should 
be  observed  in  his  trial  as  if  he  were  present. 
Competent  counsel  should  be  appointed  to  con- 
duct his  case,  and  accurate  minutes  should  be 
kept. 

13.  When  a  preacher  has  been  tried  in  an 
annual  conference,  and  suspended  for  one  year, 
the  conference  cannot  at  the  expiration  of  that- 
time  expel  him  for  the  same  offense,  or  continue 
the   suspension  for  another  period.      When   a 
member  has  suffered  the  punishment  which  was 
adjudged  by  the  conference,  at  the  time  of  his 
trial,  he  is  deemed  clear  by  the  law.  (Bishop 
Iledding.) 

14.  A  preacher  under  suspension  by  a  com- 
mittee, called  by  a  presiding  elder,  has  no  right 
to  vote  on  any  question,  at  the  ensuing  annual 
conference,  previously  to  the  examination  of  his 
case.     His  suspension,  being  in  accordance  with 


158  CHURCH   T1UALS.  [Chap.  V, 

the  provisions  of  the  Discipline,  continues  until 
it  is  removed  by  the  conference. 

15.  When  a  traveling  preacher  is  so  unaccept- 
able, inefficient,  or  secular,  as  to  be  no  longer 
useful  in  his  work,  the  conference  inay  request 
him  to  ask  a  location,  and  if  he  shall  refuse  to 
comply  with  the  request,  the  conference  shall 
bear  with  him  till  the  session  next  ensuing,  at 
which  time,  if  he  persist  in  his  refusal,  the  con- 
ference may,  without  formal  trial,  locate  him, 
without  his  consent,  by  a  vote  of  two  thirds  of 
the  members  present  and  voting.    (Dis.  of  1880, 
*|[  188.)     It  is  a  rule  of  discipline  that  every  trav- 
el ing  preacher  shall  undergo  an  annual  examina- 
tion of  character;  and  it  is  expected  that  every 
member  will  be  present  at  the  session  of  the  con- 
ference.    In  case  of  the  location  of  a  preacher 
without  consent,  as   well  as  of  expulsion,    the 
aggrieved  party  is  not  allowed  an  appeal.    But 
it  cannot  be  too  strongly  urged,  that  in  all  cases 
where   the  character  of  a  brother  is  to  be  ar- 
rested, or  his  relation  changed  in  the  ministry, 
due   notice   should    be   previously    given,  and 
efforts  made  to  remove  the  embarrassments. 

16.  The  secretary  of  an  annual  conference 
must  carefully  take  all  the  testimony  given  in 
the  annual  conference;  documentary  testimony 


*ec.  XIV]  CIIUKCH   OFFENSES.  159 

need  not  be  spread  upon  the  journals  of  the 
conference,  but  must  be  properly  filed  and  pre- 
served. In  case  of  trial,  a  copy  of  the  charges, 
specifications,  and  the  final  action  of  the  con- 
ference, should  be  entered  on  the  principal 
conference  journal,  and  such  references  made 
to  all  the  testimony  and  documents  used  in  the 
trial,  that  they  may  be  readily  found  and  clearly 
identified. 

17.  A   committee   appointed   by   an   annual    t 
conference  to  try  a  traveling  minister  is  not  t 
authorized  to  hold  its  sessions  after  the  final 
adjournment  of  the  conference.     The  committee 
of  trial  is  the  representative  of  the  annual  con-  l 
ference,  and  subject  to  its  laws  of  action ;  and  , 
hence  cannot  perpetuate  its  existence  after  the 
official  adjournment  of  the  body  which  created  * 
it.—  Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1864,  p.  232. 

SECTION  XIY.—  Church  Offenses. 

1.  In  every  Church  trial  it  should  be  defi- 
nitely stated  under  what  rule  of  discipline  the 
case  is  to  be  tried. 

2.  All  actionable   offenses  may   be  brought 
under  one  of  the  following  rules : 


160  CIIURCH.  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

a.  A  crime  expressly  forbidden  by  the  word 
of  God,  sufficient  to  exclude  a  person  from  the 
kingdom  of  grace  and  glory. 

I).  Neglect  of  duties  and  of  the  means  of 
grace ;  imprudent  conduct ;  ii.dulging  sinful 
\vords,  tempers,  or  actions;  the  buying,  selling, 
or  using  of  intoxicating  liquors  as  a  beverage; 
dancing,  playing  at  games  of  chance,  attending 
theaters,  horse-races,  circuses,  dancing-parties, 
or  patronizing  dancing-schools,  or  taking  such 
other  amusements  as  are  obviously  of  misleading 
or  questionable  moral  tendency,  or  disobedience 
to  the  order  and  discipline  of  the  Church. 

c.  Endeavoring    to   sow   dissensions    in    our 
societies  by  inveighing  against  either  our  doc- 
trines or  discipline. 

d.  Behaving  dishonestly  in  business  transac- 
tions, or  contracting  debts  without  a  probability 
of  paying  them. 

e.  Refusing  to  refer  to  arbitration  disputed 
pecuniary  questions,  when  recommended  by  the 
preacher  in  charge ;  refusing  to  abide  by  the 
judgment  of  arbiters  ;   entering  into  law-suita 
with   another  member,  against  the  provisions 
of  the  Discipline. 

3.  If  the  offense  belong  to  the  first  class,  no 
Church  labor  is  necessary  before  the  presenta- 


Sec.  XIV.]  CHURCH  OFFENSES.  161 

tion  of  the  charge ;  in  all  other  cases  specific 
preliminary  steps  must  be  taken. 

4.  If  a  preacher  holds  and  disseminates  doc- 
trines contrary  to  our  Articles  of  Religion,  and 
persists  therein,  he  may  be  suspended  by  a 
committee,  and  tried  at  the  annual  conference. 
If  his  error,  however,  is  a  mere  matter  of 
opinion,  not  embraced  in  our  Articles  of  Re- 
ligion, he  may  be  borne  with  in  the  interval 
of  conference,  arid  his  case  brought  before  the 
annual  conference. 

The  twenty-five  Articles  of  Religion  do  not 
embrace  all  that  is  included  in  "  our  present 
existing  and  established  standards  of  doctrine." 
Many  of  the  characteristic  doctrines  of  our 
Church  are  not  even  referred  to  directly  in  those 
articles.  Many  of  our  leading  articles  of  relig- 
ion are  expressed  in  a  negative  form,  and  have 
special  reference  to  the  errors  of  the  Papal 
Church.  Bishop  Burnet  remarks,  that  since 
"  the  Church  of  Rome  owns  all  that  is  positive 
in  our  doctrine,  there  could  be  no  discrimination 
made  but  by  condemning  the  most  important 
additions  which  they  have  brought  into  the 
Christian  religion  in  express  words."  The  Dis- 
cipline does  not  expressly  state  what  are  our 

[<  established  standards  of  doctrine  ;  "  but  usage 
11 


162  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

and  general  consent  would  probably  designate 
Mr.  Wesley's  Sermons,  and  his  Notes  on  the 
New  Testament,  and  Watson's  Theological  In- 
stitutes. 


5.  The  rule  respecting  members  of  our  Church 
inveighing  against  our  doctrines  and  discipline 
is  not  to  be  understood  in  the  sense  that  they 
must  be  brought  before  a  committee,  and  found 
guilty  of  this  offense,  before  they  can  even  be 
reproved  by  the  senior  minister  of  the  circuit. 
The  reproof  is  to  be  given,  not  as  a  judicial  act 
by  the  adjudicating  body,  but  simply  as  the  act 
of  the  pastor,  in  the  faithful  discharge  of  the 
duties  of  the  pastorate,  and  to  be  performed  by 
him  when  he  is  clearly  convinced  that  the  ac- 
cused has  really  endeavored  to  sow  dissensions 
in  the  Church.  If  the  member  "  persists  in  sue) 
pernicious  practices  "  after  reproof  is  thus  ac 
ministered,  he  should  be  brought  to  trial  on 
a  complaint  setting  forth  the  nature  of  his 
offense. 


6.  When  a  charge  of  slander  is  preferred  by 
one  member  against  another,  it  is  lawful  for  the 
accused  to  prove  the  truth  of  his  statements  aa 
a  ground  of  justification. 


Sec.  XV.  I  PENALTY.  163 

7.  But  when  a  member  is  accused  of  uttering 
sinful  words  in  reference  to  a  member,  it  is  not 
'.awful  to  attempt  to  prove  their  truthfulness. 


8.  No  charges  for  slander  can  be  received 
except  from  the  person  alleged  to  be  slandered, 
or  from  his  representative  ;  but  charges  involv- 
ing defamation  of  character  received  from  other 
persons  must  be  for  evil  speaking,  and  the  truth 
of  such  declarations  cannot  be  given  in.evidence, 
as  it  would  involve  an  absent  person. 


SECTION  XY. — Penalty. 

1.  Church  penalty  is  designed  to  operate  as 
a  motive  upon  the  members  to  observe  correct 
moral  conduct,  and  to  declare  the  purity  of 
the  Church  by  her  efforts  to  maintain  correct 
principles.  To  secure  these  objects  it  is  not  so 
necessary  that  the  punishment  should  be  severe 
as  that  it  should  be  certain.  It  is  impossible 
to  graduate  the  punishment  according  to  the 
true  demerit  of  the  offense,  and  hence  as  mild 
measures  should  be  pursued  as  possible,  and 
yet  show  that  the  Church  does  not  connive  at 
sin,  and  seek  to  conceal  corruption  rather  than 
to  purge  it  away. 


164:  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap  V 

2.  The  following    awards   should  be  given, 
according  to  different  circumstances  : 

a.  A  declaration  of  the  guilt  of  the  accused, 
while  forgiveness  is  extended  to  the  penitent. 
I.  Censure,  or  reproof. 

c.  Suspension. 

d.  Expulsion. 

3.  Forgiveness.     The  Church  is  competent  to 
forgive  an  offender,  when  the  ends  of  moral  dis- 
cipline can  be  promoted   by  it.     Bishop  Hed- 
ding  remarks  :  "  It  is  asked,  Must  he  expel  in 
all  cases  ?     Is  there  no  room  for  pardon  ?     For 
scandalous  crimes  expulsion  should  undoubtedly 
take  place  ;  but  for  crimes  of  a  moderate  degree, 
and  when  the  offender  is  suitably  humble  and 
penitent,  forgiveness  and  forbearance  should  be 
exercised,  and  a  repentant  brother  may  be  re- 
tained in  the  Church.     '  Brethren,  if  any  man 
be  overtaken  in  a  fault,  ye  which  are  spiritual 
restore  such  a  one  in  the  spirit  of  meekness.' 
Gal.  vi,  1.     That  the  rule  is  to  be  so  understood 
is  evident  from  a  clause  in  the  General  Rules, 
(*i\  35 :)  '  If  there  be  any  among  us  who  .  ob- 
serves  them   not,  who   habitually   breaks   any 
of  them,  let  it  be  known  unto  them  who  watch 
over  that  soul  as  they  who  must  give  an  ac- 
count.    We  will   bear  with   him  for  a  season, 


Sec.  XV.l  PENALTY.  165 

but  if  then  he  repent  not,  he  hath  no  more  place 
among  us  ;  we  have  delivered  our  souls.'  " — Dis- 
course on  Discipline,  pp.  66.  67.  " In  exercising 
mercy,  in  this  case,  the  preacher  will  need  great 
prudence  to  avoid  doing  it  in  a  way  to  grieve 
and  afflict  the  members,  or  cast  a  stumbling- 
block  before  the  world.  On  this  question  he 
should  take  counsel  with  the  select  number,  or 
the  leaders'  meeting,  or  in  some  cases  with  the 

o? 

society  in  the  place,  that  it  may  be  understood 
that  the  offender  is  restored  by  general  con- 
sent."— Discourse  on  Discipline,  pp.  68,  69. 

Bishop  M'Kendree  remarks :  "  When  a  person 
is  clearly  convicted  of  such  a  crime  or  crimes, 
(such  as  are  expressly  forbidden  in  the  word  of 
God.)  nothing  short  of  expulsion  will  satisfy  the 
rule,  unless  there  be  such  a  manifestation  of 
genuine  repentance  and  humiliation  as  will  fully 
justify  the  restoration  of  the  offending  person  : 
in  such  a  case  the  connection  between  crime  and 
its  punishment  is  dissolved.  Such  cases  may 
possibly  occur,  and  when  they  do,  much  care 
and  prudence  are  necessary  to  guard  the  Church 
from  reproach  and  injury,  and  at  the  same  time 
to  save  the  offender." 

4.  That  the  Discipline  contemplates  that  cen- 
sure and  suspension  may  be  inflicted  as  a  Church 


166  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

penalty  upon  disorderly  members,  as  well  as 
upon  convicted  local  and  traveling  preachers, 
is  evident  from  various  considerations.  The 
heading  of  the  section  respecting  disorderly 
members  was,  in  its  first  introduction  into  the 
Discipline  in  1789,  "  Of  bringing  to  trial,  find- 
ing guilty,  reproving,  suspending,  or  excluding 
disorderly  persons,"  etc.  The  section  relating 
to  the  "sale  and  use  of  spirituous  liquors," 
which  formed  a  part  of  the  Discipline  from 
1796  to  1840,  provided  that  an  accused  person 
should  "  be  cleared,  censured,  suspended,  or  ex- 
cluded, according  to  his  conduct,  as  on  other 
charges  of  immorality." 


5.  No  member  can  be  suspended  for  a  partic- 
ular offense  without  a  regular  trial  according  to 
Discipline ;  and  no  preacher  can  be  suspended 
by  an  annual  conference  beyond  the  period  of 
one  year. 

6.  When  a  bill  of  charges  is  correctl}*  drawn, 
the  penalty  must  be  based  upon  the  charges 
which  are  sustained  against  the  accused. :  No 
member  can  be  punished  for  any  higher  offense 
than  is  charged  against  him  in  the  bill;  but 
punishment  may  be  awarded  for  any  lower  of 


Sec.  XV.]  PENALTY.  167 

fense,  of  which  he  is  convicted,  in  the  specifi- 
cations which  are  sustained  against  him. 

7.  "  It  has  been  asked,"  remarks  Bishop  Hed- 
diriij,  "  Has  a  preacher  a  right  to  keep  members 
of  the  Church,  who  have  not  been  tried  or  cen- 
sured, out  of  love-feast,  or  to  repel  them  from 
the  Lord's  Supper,  for  any  little  irregularity  in 
dress,  or  otherwise,  which  he  may  perceive  in 
them  at  any  time?     No;  in  ordinary  cases  he 
has  no  such  right :  he  may  not  punish  members 
except  as  the  law  directs.     Yet  there  may  he 
extraordinary  cases  which  might  admit  of  this 
measure,  from  his  authority  as  a  minister,  with- 
out any  direct  rule.     For  example  :  a  member 
is  known  to  have  committed  a  scandalous  crime, 
and   there   has   not  been   time  to  call  him   to 
trial  in  the  regular  way.     He  comes  to  love- 
feast,  or  to  the  holy  sacrament ;  in  these  cir- 
cumstances the  minister  may  repel  him." — Dis- 
course on  Discipline,  p.  72. 

8.  When  a  preacher  is  judged  guilty  of  mal- 
administration by  an  animal  conference,  censure 
and  reproof  are  the  highest  penalty  which  they 
can  inflict. 

9.  When    a  member  or  preacher  has  been 
expelled,  according  to  due  form  of  Discipline, 


168  CHURCH   TRIALS.  [Chap.  V 

he  cannot  afterward  enjoy  the  privileges  of  so- 
ciety and  of  sacraments,  in  our  Church,  without 
contrition,  confession,  and  satisfactory  reforma- 
tion ;  but  if,  however,  the  society  become  con- 
vinced of  the  innocence  of  an  expelled  lay 
member,  he  may  again  be  received  on  trial 
without  confession.  No  expelled  member  can 
be  received  again  into  full  membership  without 
a  subsequent  probation. 

10.  When  an  annual  conference  decides  that 
a  preacher  having  charge  has  expelled  a  member 
contrary  to    the  provisions   of  the  Discipline, 
such  decision  restores  the  person  so  expelled  to 
Church-membership.     The  conference  must  de- 
cide within  what  time  the  alleged  maladminis- 
tration must  have  taken  place,  to  bring  it  prop- 
erly before  them.  (Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1852,  p.  73.) 

11.  If  the  society  or  select  number  renders  a 
verdict  of  guilty,  it  is  not  optional  with   the 
preacher  whether  he  will  expel  the  offender;  as 
an  administrator  of  the  Discipline,  he  must  pro- 
nounce the  penalty  of  the  law.     The  Discipline 
says,  "  Let  the  preacher  in  charge  expel  him." 
An  exception,  however,  should  be  made  in  those 
cases  where,  in  view  of  peculiar  palliating  cir- 
cumstances, or  the  deep  penitence  of  the  accused, 


See.  XV.l  PENALTY.  169 

the  committee  or  society  recommends  that  he  be 
still  further  borne  with. 

12.  The  practice  of  requiring  a  public  per- 
sonal confession  before  the  Church,  or  threatening 
expulsion  if  it  is  not  made,  is  of  doubtful  expe- 
diency.    If  the  accused  is  really  penitent,  this 
can  be  ascertained  in  some  other  mode.     The 
Church,  when  not  under  the  peculiar  sympathy 
which  the  presence  of  the  offender  might  pro- 
duce, is  better  prepared  to  decide  whether  the 
concessions  and  acknowledgments  of  the  accused 
are  sufficient  to  secure  the  honor  of  the  Church 
if  expulsion  is   not  inflicted.      Many  persons, 
especially  under  the  mortification  of  the  alleged 
offense,    are   wholly   incapable  of   making   an 
appropriate  statement  to  the  Church  in  person. 

13.  'It  is  made  the  duty  of  the  preacher  in 
charge,  at  every  quarterly  meeting,  to  read  the 
names  of  those  who  have  been  excluded  from 
the  Church  during  the  preceding  quarter ;  but 
the  Discipline  does  not  contemplate  that  their 
crimes — the  grounds  of  Church  action — shall  be 
publicly  announced,  nor  that  any  unusual  pub- 
licity shouM  be  given  to  the  fact  of  expulsion. 
When  persons  are  thus  read  out  of  the  society 
in  the  hearing  of  those  who  have  an  interest  in 


170  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V 

the  communication,  and  a  right  to  know  the 
action  of  the  Church,  it  is  not  legal  defamation 
of  character,  nor  prima  facie  evidence  of  malice. 

14.  When  a  member  is  found  guilty  of  im- 
prudent conduct,  and  required  to  make  confes- 
sion, and  refuses  to  comply,  the  preacher  can- 
not expel  him  without  a  further  trial  before  a 
committee,  showing  that  he  does  not  comply. 


SECTION  XYI. — Arbitration. 

1.  In  1781  it  was  made  the  duty  of  the  as- 
sistant, at  the  quarterly  meeting,  to  consult  with 
the  steward  in  appointing  proper  persons  to  ex- 
amine into  the  circumstances  where  there  was 
a  dispute  respecting  pecuniary  matters ;  and  if 
there  was  suspicion  of  injustice,  or  inability,  in- 
the  referees,  to  appoint  men  of  more  skill  and 
probity :  and  the  parties  were  then  required  to 
abide  by  their  decision,  or  be  excluded  from  the 
society. 

In  1784  the  Discipline  required  the  assistant 
to  consult  with  the  stewards  and  leaders,  and 
appoint  referees,  whose  decision  was  final ;  and 
the  party  refusing  to  abide  by  it  was  to  be  ex- 
pelled, unless  there  appeared  to  the  assistant 
some  fraud  or  gross  mistake  in  the  decision  ;  in 


Sec.  XVI.]  ARBITRATION  171 

which  case  he  was  to  appoint  new  referees  for 
a  rehearing  of  the  case,  and  the  decision  of  this 
tribunal  was  to  he  absolutely  final. 

2.  Under  onr  present  rule,  the  authority  of 
the  preacher  is  greatly  diminished ;  yet  he  has 
discretionary  power  to  decide — 

a.  AVhether  the  circumstances  require  any 
action.  The  rule  does  not  oblige  him  to  recom- 
mend arbitration,  unless  he  judges  that  the 
case  is  such  as  strictly  to  demand  such  investi- 
gation. 

I.  If  proceedings  should  be  commenced,  un- 
der what  rule  of  Discipline  the  action  should  be 
brought, — whether  it  is  an  immorality,  an  in- 
discretion, or  a  dispute  respecting  the  paymen1- 
of  debts,  etc.  (Bishop  Morris.) 

3.  The  phrase  "  business  transactions  "  is  to 
be  restricted  entirely  to  pecuniary  matters.    But 
it  embraces  them  in  all  their  forms,  whether 
relating  to  real  or  personal  estate,  debts,  de- 
mands, accounts,  or  contracts. 

4.  The  arbiters  to  whom  the  case  is  referred 
must  be  members  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  ;  but  the  arbitration  does  not  assume 
the  form  of  a  trial,  and  it  is  not  necessary  that 


172  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Cl.ap.  V, 

the  arbiters  should  belong  to  the  society  with 
which  either  of  the  parties  is  connected. 

5.  The  preacher  in  charge  should  preside  at 
the  arbitration,  when  both  of  the  parties  belong 
to  the  same  society.     If  they  belong  to  different 
societies,    Christian    and    ministerial    etiquette 
would  seem  to  require  that  the  senior  preacher 
should  preside. 

6.  Order  of  conducting  an  arbitration. 
a.  Religious  services. 

£.  Appointment  of  secretary  by  the  referees. 

c.  The  complainant  makes  his  statement,  in- 
troducing such  testimony  as  he  deems  proper. 

d.  The  defendant  makes  his  answer,  and  in- 
troduces his  testimony. 

e.  Rebutting  testimony  by  the  complainant. 

f.  Rebutting  testimony  by  the  defendant. 

g.  Closing  arguments, — 
(1.)  By  the  complainant. 
(2.)  By  the  defendant. 

h.  The  parties  should  then  retire,  and  the 
decision  should  be  written  and  signed  by  the 
referees. 

7.  The  rule  does  not  require  our  members  to 
arbitrate  when  the  other  party  is  not  a  member 
of  our  Church. 


Sec.  XVI.]  ALBITKATION.  173 

8.  When  a  dispute  respecting  pecuniary  mat- 
ters arises  between  a  member  of  our  Church  and 
a  firm  or  corporation,  to   which  one  or   more 
members  of  our  Church  belongs,  the   rule  re- 
specting  arbitration    does   not   apply  ;  for  the 
corporation,  as  such,  is  not  under  the  control  of 
the    Church.     For   any    unjustifiable    business 
transaction,   performed   by  the  member,  or  by 
the  firm,  which    the  member  could    have  con- 
trolled, he  should  be  held  strictly  accountable. 

9.  A  member  refusing  to  arbitrate  when  rec- 
ommended to  do  so  by  the  preacher  in  charge, 
renders   himself  liable    to  expulsion   from   the 
Church ;  but  in  this,  as  in  all  other  cases,  he 
cannot  be  expelled  until  a  select  number,  in  due 
form,  declare  that  he  refuses  to  arbitrate,  or  has 
violated  some  express  rule  of  Church  covenant. 

10.  If  a  preacher  or  member  shall  enter  into  a 
lawsuit  with  another  member  before  the  matter 
is  submitted  to  arbitration,  he  does  so  on  his- 
own  responsibility;  and,  if  arrested,  must  show 
that  the  case  was  of  such  a  nature  as  to  require 
and  justify  a  process  at  law. 

11.  The  inspecting  of  the  accounts  of  those 
who    "  fail  in   business,"    and  the  calling  of  a 


17-i  CHURCH  TRIALS.  [Chap.  V, 

debtor  before  a  committee,  to  show  cause  why 
he  does  not  make  payment,  are  not  Church 
trials ;  and  a  member  cann  :>t  be  expelled  merely 
on  those  examinations,  whatever  fraud  and  dis- 
honesty those  examinations  may  disclose.  But 
if  these  examinations  should  disclose  frauds,  a 
bill  of  charges  should  be  formed  from  them, 
and  the  accused  brought  to  trial,  in  due  form, 
before  a  select  committee. 


doc.  1. 1  CHURCHES  AND  PARSONAGES.        175 


CHAPTER  VI. 
CHURCH   PROPERTY. 

SECTION  I. — Building  Churches  and  Parsonages. 

1.  THE  Discipline  expressly  discountenances 
the  incurring  of  heavy  liabilities  in  the  erection 
of  churches  and  parsonages.  Hence  it  is  made 
the  duty  of  the  quarterly  conference,  where  it  is 
contemplated  to  build  a  house  of  worship,  to 
secure  the  lot  on  which  such  house  is  to  be 
erected,  according  to  our  deed  of  settlement* 
and  also  "  to  appoint  a  judicious  committee  ol 
at  least,  three  members  of  our  Church,  to  form 
an  estimate  of  the  amount  necessary  to  build  ; 
and  three  fourths  of  the  money,  according  to 
such  estimate,  must  be  secured,  or  subscribed, 
before  any  such  building  shall  be  commenced." 
"  In  all  cases  where  debts  for  building  houses  of 
worship  have  been,  or  may  be,  incurred  contrary 
to,  or  in  disregard  of,  the  above  recommendation, 
our  members  and  friends  are  requested  to  dis- 
countenance, by  declining  pecuniary  aid  to,  all 
agents  who  travel  beyond  their  own  circuits  or 
districts  for  the  collection  of  funds  for  the  dis 


176  CHURCH   PROPERTY.  fOhap,  VI, 

charge  of  such  debts,  except  in  such  peculiar 
cases  as  may  be  approved  by  an  annual  confer- 
ence, or  such  agents  as  may  be  appointed  by 
their  authority." 

2.  When  a  number  of  persons  have  associated 
themselves  together,  in  pursuance  of  the  statute, 
for  the  purpose  of  erecting  a  meeting-house, 
and  appointed  three  or  more  of  their  number  a 
building  committee,  to  superintend  the  erection 
of  the  house,  the  mere  acceptance  of  the  ap- 
pointment does  not  amount  to  a  personal  un- 
dertaking, on  the  part  of  the  committee,  to 
build  the  house  ;  but  the  only  effect  is  to  con- 
stitute them  the  agents  and  representatives  of 
the  association,  to  act  upon  joint  consideration 
and  advice,  with  power  to  make  all  necessary 
contracts,  and  authorize  all  such  expenditures 
as  the  purposes  of  the  agency  require. 

If  the  building  committee  are  the  agents  of 
an  unincorporated  body,  and  in  making  their 
contracts  do  not  pledge  their  individual  credit 
and  responsibility,  they  will  not  be  held  under 
a  personal  obligation  for  such  indebtedness,  if  at 
the  time  of  the  contract  the  nature  of  their 
agency  was  definitely  known. 

And  if  the  committee  should  contract  with 
one  of  their  own  number,  they  would  as  effect- 


Sec.  II.]  TRUSTEES.  177 

ually  bind  the  society  as  if  they  contracted  with 
a  stranger.  (Ref.  3  Vt.  Rep.,  431  ;  2  Wash- 
burn,  593  ;  3  ibid.,  405.) 

3.  Where  the  articles  of  association  provided 
that  the  whole  expense  of  the  house  should  be 
estimated  on  the  whole  number  of  pews,  by  ap- 
praisal, and  that  the  subscribers  should  bid  for 
their  choice  of  pews,  but  that  the  average  price 
of  the  pews  should  not  exceed  a  certain  sum, 
this  could  not  be  construed  as  limiting  the 
amount  to  .be  expended  by  the  building  com- 
mittee in  erecting  the  house ;  and  a  member  of 
the  committee  might  recover  for  services  and 
expenditures  in  erecting  the  building,  notwith- 
standing the  whole  expense  of  the  house  ex- 
ceeded the  amount  which  the  pews  would  bring 
at  the  average  price  specified,  if  it  could  be 
shown  that  the  building  committee  had  not  de- 
parted from  the  general  plan  prescribed  for  the 
building.  (Ibid.) 

SECTION  II. — Trustees. 

1.  All  our  Church  property,  such  as  meeting- 
houses, parsonages,  and  cemeteries,  held  accord- 
ing to.  Discipline,  is  vested  in  a  board  of  trustees, 

who  hold  it  in  trust  for  the  use  of  the  members 
12 


178  CHURCH   PEOPERTY.  [Chap. VI, 

of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  The  min- 
istry, either  in  their  individual  or  associated  ca- 
pacity, as  Annual  or  General  Conferences,  have 
never  claimed,  nor  do  they  hold,  in  law,  any 
title  to  any  chapel  or  parsonage  by  the  deed  of 
settlement.  The  fee  of  the  land  is  vested  in 
trustees,  who  hold  the  property  in  behalf  of 
each  respective  society.  The  General  Confer- 
ence claims  merely  the  right  to  supply  the 
pulpit,  by  such  means  as  it  shall  elect,  with 
duly  accredited  ministers  and  preachers  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  "  who  shall  preach 
and  expound  God's  holy  word  therein."  The 
General  Conference  of  1796,  referring  to  the 
deed  of  settlement,  adopted  the  following  sen- 
timents: "By  which  we  manifest  to  the  whole 
world  that  the  property  of  the  preaching-houses 
will  not  be  invested  in  the  General  Conference. 
But  the  preservation  of  our  union,  and  the  prog- 
ress of  the  work  of  God,  indispensably  require 
that  the  free  and  full  use  of  the  pulpit  should  be 
in  the  hands  of  the  General  Conference  and  the 
yearly  conferences  authorized  by  them.  Of 
course,  the  traveling  preachers  who  are  in  full 
connection,  assembled  \n  their  conferences,  are 
the  patrons  of  the  pulpits  of  our  churches."- 
Oen.  Conf.  Jov-r.,  vol.  i,  p.  15.  Whene-ver  it 
becomes  necessary,  for  the  payment  of  debts,  or 


Bee.  II.]  TRUSTEES.  179 

with  a  view  to  reinvestment,  to  make  a  sale  of 
church  property,  the  proceeds  of  the  sale,  after 
the  payment  of  debts,  must  be  applied  to  the 
purchase  or  improvement  of  other  property  for 
the  same  uses,  and  deeded  to- the  Church  in  the 
same  manner,  according  to  the  judgment  of  the 
quarterly  conference  for  the  use  of  the  said 
society. 

2.  Where  the  law  of  the  State  or  Territory 
prescribes  no  specified  mode  of  election,  trustees 
must  be  elected  annually  by  the  fourth  quar- 
terly conference  of  the  circuit  or  station,  upon 
the  nomination  of  the  preacher  in  charge,  or  the 
presiding  elder  of  the  district. 

In  all  meetings  of  trustees,  thus  appointed, 
the  stationed  preacher,  by  general  usage,  is  ex 
officio  the  presiding  officer. 

3.  To  be  eligible  as  a  trustee,  a  person  must 
be,  at  least,  twenty-one  years  of  age,  and   a 
majority   of  every  board  "of  trustees  must  be 
members  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 
No  trustee  can  be  ejected  from  office  while  he  is 
in  joint  security  for  money,  unless  such  relief  be 
given  him  as  is  demanded,  or  the  creditor  will 
accept. 


180  CHURCH   PROPERTY.  [Chap.  VI, 

4.  The  great  and  paramount  duty  of  trustees 
of  religious  corporations  is  to  see  that  the  tem- 
poralities committed  to  their  charge  are  fully 
and  fairly  devoted  to  the  purposes  which  the 
founders  had  in  view  in  creating  the  trust.  All 
their  authority  is  necessarily  subordinate  to  this 
end,  and  all  exercise  of  it  beyond  the  legitimate 
attainment  of  this  end  is  usurpation. 

As  tlie  deed  of  settlement  secures  the  use  of 
the  pulpit,  "  to  preach  and  expound  God's  holy 
word  therein,"  to  such  ministers  and  preachers 
of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  as  the  Gen- 
eral Conference  shall  duly  authorize,  if  the 
trustees  should  refuse  to  receive  them,  and  shut 
the  doors  of  the  church  against  them,  the  court 
would  issue  a  peremptory  mandamus  command- 
ing them  to  admit  the  preacher  thus  appointed 
into  the  church. 

It  is  no  valid  excuse  for  the  trustees  to  say 
that  a  majority  of  the  members  of  the  Church 
direct  them  to  close  the  doors,  and  sustain  them 
in  the  act.  "  They  are  not  chosen  to  represent 
that  majority,  but  rather  to  execute  the  trust  of 
carrying  out  the  intention  of  those  from  whose 
benevolence  flow  the  temporalities  put  in  their 
charge.  If  such  an  excuse  will  ever  be  availa- 
ble, where  will  it  stop  ?  What  shaJ  set  bounds 
to. its  encroachment?  They  from  whose  benev- 


TRUSTEES.  181 

olence  has  arisen  some  pious  foundation,  or  some 
noble  charity,  may  have  passed  from  the  stage 
of  life,  leaving  behind  them  some  such  monu- 
ment of  their  love  to  God  and  man,  in  the  confi- 
dent expectation  that  the  trust  they  have 
confided  to  posterity  will  be  faithfully  executed. 
Upon  what  principle  can  it  be  justified,  that 
they  who  now  live  to  enjoy  the  fruits  of  the 
chanty  of  the  dead  should  be  permitted,  at  their 
caprice,  to  control,  and  perhaps  divert  from  its 
original  purpose,  the  endowment  which  owes 
none  of  its  support  to  them  ?  No  such  principle 
is  known  in  law  or  morals." — 2  Barbour,  pp. 
4-14,  415. 

5.  The  trustees  of  an  incorporated  religious 
society  are,  virtute  qfficii,  entitled  to  the  posses- 
sion of  all  the  temporalities  of  the  society,  and 
are  considered  as  lawfully  seized  of  the  grounds 
and  buildings  of  the  Church  ;  and  hence,  if  the 
trustees  should  close  the  doors  of  the  church 
against  the  minister  and  congregation,  they  have 
no  right  to  make  a  forcible  entry  into  the  church. 
The  merit  or  demerit  of  the  trustees  in  closing 
the  doors  of  the  church  cannot  be  taken  into 
consideration  in  this  case.  If  the  trustees  have 
violated  their  trust,  the  society  has  ample  reme- 
dy ;  but  this  remedy  does  not  consist  in  a  forci- 


182  CHURCH   PROPERTY.  [Chap.  VI, 

ble  entry  upon  their  possessions.  While  the 
trustees  are  in  actual  possession,  the  civil  au- 
thority is  bound  to  protect  them  against  the 
unlawful  and  irregular  intrusion  of  any  persons, 
whether  members  of  the  Church  or  strangers. 
•The  trustees  are  responsible  for  the  faithful  dis- 
charge of  their  trust,  not  to  a  violent  mob,  but 
to  the  society,  in  a  legal  manner,  whose  inter- 
ests they  serve.  (Ref.  9  Johnson,  156.) 

6.  A  church  is  erected  for  the  public  worship 
of  God,  and  the  moral  and  religious  instruction 
of  the  people  ;    and  the  trustees  have  no  au- 
thority to  make  use  of  the  church,  at  such  inter- 
vals  us  it   is  not   occupied  by  the  pastor,  for 
purposes  at  variance  with  the  object  for  which 
it  was  erected. 

7.  Trustees  can  legally  protect   the   church 
property  against  all  lawless  violence  and  injury, 
even  if  the  society  has  never  been  legally  incor- 
porated. and  may   maintain  an  action  against 
the   trespasser   for  the  injury   which   is   done. 
(Ref.  9  Wendall, 


8.  Where  the  officers  of  a  religious  corpora- 
tion are  required  by  their  charter  to  be  annually 
elected,  they  would,  probably,  be  allowed  to 


Sec.  II.]  TRUSTEES  183 

exercise  their  office  after  tlie  expiration  of  the 
year,  provided  an  election  bad  not  taken  place 
to  till  the  vacancy.  This  case  is  provided  for  in 
some  of  the  States  by  express  statutes,  and  such 
has  been  the  general  ruling  of  the  courts. 

9.  The  power  of  trustees  in   the  Methodist 
Episcopal  *.  hurch  seems  to  be  restricted  to  the 
holding  of  real  estate,  and  such  personal  prop- 
erty.as  has  been  raised  or  acquired  for  the  bene- 
fit alone  of  the  temporalities  of  the   Church. 
They  may  take  up  subscriptions  and  collections 
for  the  purpose  of  creating  church  property,  for 
the  payment  of  debts  previously  contracted,  and 
for  repairing  and  improving  the  real  estate  of 
the  society  ;  but  they  have  no  authority  to  for- 
bid the  stewards  raising  voluntary  contributions 
for  the  support  of  the  Gospel  and  the  various 
benevolent  institutions  of  the  Church,  nor  can 
they  claim  that  the  funds  raised  for  these  pur- 
poses, either  in  the  classes  or  in  the  public  con- 
gregation,  shall  be  deposited  in   their  hands. 
Our  economy  requires  that  these  funds  shall  be 
disbursed   by   the   stewards,  and   the   trustees 
cannot  exercise  their  powers  in   such  a  man- 
ner   as    to  defeat  the  very  purposes   of   their 
creation.     (Bangs's  His.  M.  E.  Church,  vol.  iV, 
|.p.  175-181.) 


184:  CHURCH   PROPERTY.  [Chap.  VI, 

10.  The  board  of  trustees  is  responsible  to  the 
quarterly  conference  of  the  circuit  or  station, 
and  is  required  to  present  a  report,  annually,  of 
its  acts  during  the  preceding  year ;  hence  the 
quarterly  conference  must  see  that  all  vacancies 
in  the  board  of  trust  are  duly  filled,  and  that 
the  corporation  does  not  in  any  instance  trans- 
cend its  powers,  or  fail  to  discharge  the  obliga- 
tions of  its  trust.  In  case  it  is  necessary  to  take 
any  legal  steps  to  check  the  action  of  the  trust- 
ees, the  quarterly  conference  is  the  proper  body 
to  give  instruction  upon  this  subject. 

11.  Corporations  created  for  a  specific  object 
have  no  power  to  take  and  hold  real  estate  for 
purposes  wholly  foreign  to  that  object.  (3  Pick- 
ering, 232-240.) 

SECTION  III. — Pews. 

1.  We  do  not  propose  in  this  section  to  con- 
sider the  question  of  the  propriety  of  building 
churches  with  pews  ;  but  as  such  churches  exist 
among  us  it  is  a  practical  question,  What  is  the 
nature  of  the  claim  which  a  pew-holder  possesses 
to  a  pew  in  a  house  of  worship  ? 

The  society,  or  its  representatives,  the  trustees, 
own  the  fee  of  the  laud  on  which  the  house  h 


Sec.  III.]  PEWS.  185 

erected.     By  a  grant  of  a  pew.  the  grantee  ac- 
quires only  a  qualified  usufructuary  right.     He 
can  claim  no  interest  in  the  soil   beneath  his 
pew,  nor  in  the  space  above  it,  nor  an  absolute 
claim  to  any  part  of  the  building  itself.     The 
society  can  control  the  soil,  can  construct  a  gal- 
lery and  pews  above  him,  and  prevent  the  pew- 
holder  from  removing  the  material  of  his  pew 
from  the  house.     The  right  of  the  pew-owner 
is  limited  as  to  time.     If  the  house  be  burned, 
or  destroyed  by  time,  the  right  is  lost.     The 
grant  of  a  pew  does  not  oind  the  society  to  pro- 
vide for  the  maintenance  of  public  worship  in 
the  meeting-house  ;  but  they  may  abandon  it  at 
pleasure.     It  is  the  opinion,  also,  of  able  jurists 
that  the  rights  of  a  pew-owner  are  subject  to 
the  right  of  the  society  to  remove  the  house  to 
such  a  location  as  will   best  accommodate  the 
whole  congregation.     In  this  case  the  value  of 
the  property  is  not  diminished,  but  rather  en- 
hanced by  the  more  commodious  location  of  the 
house.     But   the   pew-owner  does   acquire  the 
exclusive  right  to  occupy   his  pew  when    the 
house  is  opened  for  public  religious  worship. 
He  may  exclude  all  other  persons  from  his  pew, 
by  fastening  the  pew-door,  provided  he  does  not 
annoy  those   who   occupy  other  pews   in    the 
house  ;  and  if  a  person  enters  a  pew  when  lie 


186  CHURCH   PROPERTY.  [Chap.  VI 

knows  that  the  owner  forbids  any  such  entry, 
he  becomes  a  trespasser,  and  liable  to  an  action 
for  such  entry.  (See  17  Mass.  Rep.,  435  ;  1  Pick- 
ering, 102 ;  24  Pickering,  347 ;  4  N.  II.  Rep., 
181,  182;  3  Washburn,  266,  277;  5  Metcalf, 
127  ;  5  Cowen,  496  ;  19  Pickering,  361.) 

2.  When  a  meeting-house  is  conveyed  to 
trustees  for  the  use  of  a  certain  Church  or  soci- 
ety for  a  place  of  worship,  and  for  no  other  use, 
intent,  or  purpose,  whatsoever,  and  in  the  deeds 
of  the  pews  to  individuals  the  provisions  of  the 
conveyance  of  the  house  are  referred  to  and 
recognized,  the  pew-owner  has  a  right,  probably, 
to  the  occupancy  of  his  pew  whenever  the  house 
is  publicly  opened,  though  it  is  opened  for  pur- 
poses different  from  those  mentioned  in  the  con- 
veyance ;  nor  can  the  trustees  expel  him  from 
his  pew  on  any  public  occasion.  "  It  is  the 
practice,"  however,  as  Judge  Shaw  remarks, 
"  for  religious  societies  to  lend  the  use  of  their 
houses  to  various  societies  and  philanthropic 
associations,  to  hold  meetings  for  various  pur- 
poses, and  upon  such  occasions  it  lias  been  usual 
for  the  body  or  association  to  whom  the  house 
is  lent  to  control  the  use  of  the  pews,  without 
regard  to  particular  owners.  Perhaps  loans  of 
the  use  of  houses  of  worship  may  be  resolved 


Se;.  III.]  ^   PEWS  187 

into  a  mere  practice  of  courtesy  on  the  part  of 
religious  societies,  and  of  voluntary  acquiescence 
on  the  part  of  pew-owners,  not  affecting  the 
legal  rights  of  either."— 5  Metcalf,  133. 

3.  No  pew-owner  has  a  right  to  use  his  pew 
for  any  purpose  incompatible  with  the  purpose 
for  which  the   house  was  erected  ;  and  if  he 
should  put  any  offensive  covering  over  his  pew, 
the  trustees  have  a  right  to  remove  it;  but  if, 
in  removing  it,  they  should  do  any  unnecessary 
injury  to  the  pew,  they  would  become  liable  to 
an  action  for  trespass.  (5  Metcalf,  127.) 

4.  When  a  house  of  worship  is  taken  down 
as  a  matter  of  necessity,  because  it  has  become . 
ruinous,  arid  wholly  unfit  for  the  purposes  for 
which  it  was  erected,  the  trustees  are  not  liable 
to  make  any  compensation  to  the  pew-owners, 
but   may   take   the  avails  of  the  materials  of 
which  the  house  was  constructed  for  the  purpose 
of  erecting  another  house  in  its  place ;  but  if 
the  house  is  taken  down  to  render  it  more  con- 
venient  and   tasteful,  or  if  in   rebuilding;  the 

7  -  c? 

pews  are  destroyed  for  a  useful  purpose,  an 
indemnity  must  probably  be  made  to  the  pew- 
owner.  (Ref.  3  Washburn,  266 ;  19  Pickering, 
361 ;  17  Mass.  Eep.,  435.) 


188  CHURCH    PROPERTY.  [Chap.  VI. 

If,  however,  the  trustees,  after  having  taken 
all  legal  steps,  should  remove  a  pew,  and  make 
a  tender  to  the  owner  of  the  value  of  his  pew, 
his  action  would  be  barred  for  damages.  (24 
Pickering,  347.) 

5.  The  interest  of  a  person   in   a   pew  in  a 
house  of  worship,  although   limited  and  qual- 
ified, yet  is  of  such  a  character  that  a  contract 
for  a  pew,  for  a  period  extending  beyond  one 
year,  would  probably  be  void  unless  reduced  to 
writing.  (16  Wendall,  28.) 

6.  Pews  are  regarded  in  some  States  as  real 
estate,  in  others  as  personal.     In  New  Hamp- 
shire they  are  deemed  personal  property,  and 
may  be  attached  by  leaving  an  attested  copy  of 
the   writ,  and  of  the    officer's   return  thereon, 
with  the  town  clerk  of  the  town  in  which  such 
meeting-house  is,  provided  the  debtor's  interest 
in  one  pew,  in  any  meeting-house  in  which  he 
or  his  family  usually  worship,  shall  be  exempt 
from  attachment.  (R.  S.,  chap.  184.) 

7.  Houses  of  worship,  pews,  and  their  furni- 
ture, are  exempt  from  taxation  in  "nearly  all  the 
States  of  the  Union. 


Sec.  III.]  PEWS.  189 

8.  Selling  pews  at  auction.     The  auctioneer, 
though  a  trustee,  is  the  agent  for  both  parties — 
for  the  purchaser,  as  explicitly  as  for  the  trustees. 
The  bidder  announces  his  bid  for  the  purpose 
that  the  auctioneer  may  write  his  name  against 
the  pew  to  be  sold  ;  and  when  the  entry  is  made 
the  contract  is  signed  by  an  agent  for  the  pur- 
chaser, which  renders  it  legally  binding.     But 
the  memorandum  of  the  sale  must  be  perfect : 
the  conditions  must  be  specified,  and    all  the 
papers  must  J>e  attached  together.     The  mere 
writing  of  the  name  of  the  purchaser  on  the 
ground-plan  of  the  pews,  with  the  amount  which 
is  bid,  is  not  sufficient.  (16  Wendall,  28.)' 

9.  Form  of  deed.     In  a  quit-claim  deed,  ot 
ordinary  form,  insert  the  following  description  : 

"  The  pew  or  seat  in  the  Methodist  Episcopa. 

Church  in  the  said  L ,  which  is  numbered 

,  with  all  the  privileges  and  appurtenances, 

estate,  right,  title,  interest,  and  property  of  us, 
or  of  either  of  us,  whatsoever,  as  trustees  for 
and  in  behalf  of  the  said  Methodist  Episcopal 
society :  reserving  to  the  said  Methodist  Episco- 
pal society  the  sole  use  of  the  said  church  as  a 
place  of  religious  worship,  according  to  the  rules 
and  discipline  which  from  time  to  time  may  be 
agreed  noon  at  their  General  Conferences ;  and 


190  CHURCH   PROPERTY.  [Chap.  VI> 

also  reserving  to  the  said  Methodist  Episcopal 
society  the  sole  use  of  the  said  pew  during  the 
holding  of  love-feasts,  class-meetings,  and  such 
special  Church  meetings  as  the  duly-authorized 
ministers  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church 
shall  appoint ;  and  also  reserving  unto  the  said 
Methodist  Episcopal  society  the  right  to  "levy 
a  proportionate  tax  upon  said  pew  for  the  nec- 
essary repairs  and  insurance  of  the  house." 
Signed,  sealed,  witnessed,  and  acknowledged  in 
due  form. 


SECTION  IY. — Subscription  Papers. 

1.  No  particular  form  is  required  to  render  a 
subscription  legal.  The  object  and  conditions 
of  the  subscription  should  be  clearly  and  ex- 
plicitly stated,  and  it  should  be  made  payable  to 
a  body  competent  to  contract.  A  pecuniary 
consideration  need  not  to  be  mentioned  to  render 
the  subscription  valid  :  there  should  be  implied 
mutual  promises.  The  expending  of  money,  or 
the  undertaking  by  one  party  to  accomplish  an 
object  which  both  desire,  is  a  legal  considera- 
tion for  the  promise  of  the  other.  Subscriptions 
for  the  purchase  or  improvement  of  real  estate 
should  be  made  payable  to  the  board  of  trust- 
ees, when  such  trustees  oxist. 


Sec.  IV.]  SUBSCRIPTION  PAPERS.    .  191 

2.  When  a  person,  by  a  voluntary  subscrip- 
tion, promises  to  pay  in  labor  or  materials,  at 
his  option,  during  another  season,  for  the  erec- 
tion of  a  public  building,  and  who  can  be  pre- 
sumed   to   know   that    the   building    is    being 
erected,  a  demand  on  him  for  the  labor  or  ma- 
terials, previous  to  the  completion  of  the  house, 
is  not  necessary.     A  demand   made  after  the 
building  is  finished  is  sufficient,  if  the  payee  is 
willing  to  receive  such  pay  at  the  place  where 
the  building  is  erected,  or  at  any  other  place 
equally   convenient  for  the  promiser.     If  the 
promiser.  in  such  a  case,  wishes  to  free  himself 
from  his  obligation,  he  must  make  an  offer  of 
payment  to  the  committee  appointed  to  erect 
said  building,  or  to  the  person  or  persons  to 
whom  his  subscription  has  been  assigned.    (Ref. 
2  Yt.  Reports,  48.) 

3.  When  a  conditional  subscription  is  drawn, 
it  should  be  so  expressed  that  the  corporation 
should  virtually  be  requested  by  the  promiser 
to  perform  certain  acts,  or  fulfill  certain  condi- 
tions.    Instead  of  saying  that  the  amount  sub- 
scribed is  not    to   be  paid    until  $50,000  are 
subscribed,  it  should  read,  Provided  the  corpo- 
ration   should    procure    subscriptions    to    the 
amount  of  $50,000,  and  should  afterward  invest 


192  CHURCH    PROPERTY.  [Chap.  VI, 

the  money  in  a  particular  mode.     (E,ef.  1  Com 
stock,  pp.  581-585.) 

4.  Fictitious    subscriptions,  obtained  for  the 
purpose  of  inducing  others  to  subscribe  more 
largely,  render  void  those  subscriptions  which 
follow  them.  (1  Vt.  Rep.,  189-212.) 

5.  When  an  authorized  agent  makes  a  deduc- 
tion in  collecting  a  subscription  to  a  person  to 
whom  he  thinks  it  is  entitled,  it  does  not  invali- 
date the  other  subscriptions.  (Id.) 

6.  If  the  purpose  for  which  the  subscription 
was  raised  was  never  attempted  in  any  manner 
to  be  executed,  the  promiser  would  not  be  obli- 
gated to  pay  his  subscription. 


See.  l.| 


ALLOWANCE. 


193 


CHAPTER  VII. 
MINISTERIAL  SUPPORT 
SECTION  I.— Allowance. 

1.  The  salaries  of  ministers  are  fixed  by  rep- 
resentatives of  the  people  whom  they  serve. 

The  following  schedule  will  show  the  maxi- 
mum annual  amount  allowed  to  the  preacher 
and  his  family  at  different  periods  of  the 
Church : 


1774 

1778. 

1780. 

1784. 

1800 

| 
1816.  1824-60 

Preacher.  ..  . 
Preacher's 
\vife  

£24  Penn. 

£32  Va. 

£-32  Va. 
£32* 

£24  Penn. 

£24* 
£6 
£8 

$SOt 
$80 
$16 
$24 
$16* 

$100t    $100t 
$100  i  $100 
$16  '     |16 
$24  |     $24 
$16*       f 

Child  under  7 
years  

Child  from  T 
to  14  years. 
Orphans       of 
Preachers.  . 

*  Conditionally.  t  And  travelling  expenses. 

J  The  same  as  children  of  living  preachers,  according  to  their  nge. 

2.  The  following  plan  was  adopted  by  the 
General  Conference  of  1872  for  the  support  of 
our  ministry,  and  the  widows  and  children  of 
deceased  ministers : 

13 


)94  MINISTERIAL   SUPPORT.  [Chap.  VII. 

The  Support  of  Bishops,  and  the  Families  of  Deceased 
Bi&lwps. 

The  General  Conference  shall  determine 
which  of  the  bishops  are  effective,  and  which 
are  non-effective. 

It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Book  Committee 
to  make  an  estimate  of  the  amount  necessary  to 
furnish  a  competent  support  to  each  effective 
bishop,  considering  the  number  and  condition 
of  his  family ;  and  the  amount,  if  any,  neces- 
sary to  the  comfortable  maintenance  of  the  non- 
effective  bishops  ;  and  also  the  amount  necessary 
to  assist  the  widows  and  children  of  deceased 
bishops  ;  and  the  bishops  are  authorized  to  draw 
on  the  treasurer  of  the  Episcopal  Fund  for  said 
amount,  and  also  for  their  traveling  expenses. 

The  bishop  presiding  at  an  annual  conference, 
within  whose  bounds  a  widow  or  orphan  of  a  de- 
ceased bishop  may  reside,  shall  be  authorized  to 
draw  on  the  treasurer  of  the  Episcopal  Fund  for 
such  amount  as  may  be  estimated  as  aforesaid. 

The  Book  Committee  shall  divide  the  aggre- 
gate sum  required  to  tie  raised  for  these  pur- 
poses among  the  annual  conferences,  on  the  ba- 
sis of  the  total  amount  raised  in  the  respective 
annual  conferences  for  ministerial  support,  ex- 
clusive of  missionary  appropriations;  and  the 


Sue.  I.]  ALLOWANCE.  195 

annual  conferences  shall  apportion  the  same  to 
the  several  districts ;  and  the  district  stewards 
to  the  several  charges.  (See  Discipline,  ^[  361.) 
The  amount  apportioned  to  each  pastoral 
charge  for  the  support  of  the  bishops  shall  be  a 
pro  rata  claim  with  that  of  the  stationed  preach- 
ers and  presiding  elders,  and  no  such  preacher 
or  presiding  elder  shall  be  entitled  to  his  allow- 
ance except  to  the  extent  to  which  the  claims 
of  the  bishops  are  met  by  the  station  or  district 
with  which  he  is  connected.  And  it  shall  be 
the  duty  of  the  annual  conferences  to  see  that 
the  amounts  apportioned  to  the  different  pastoral 
charges  for  the  support  of  the  bishops  are  raised 
ar.d  forwarded  quarterly,  when  practicable,  to 
the  Treasurer  of  the  Episcopal  Fund. 

The  Treasurer  shall  charge  the  sums  paid  to 
the  bishop?,  and  to  the  widows  and  children  of 
deceased  bishops,  to  "  The  Episcopal  Fund,"  and 
all  collections  received  from  the  different  charges 
for  the  support  of  the  bishops  shall  be  credited  to 
said  fund.  And  the  Treasurer  shall  report  annu- 
ally to  the  annual  conferences  the  amounts  re- 
ceived from  the  several  annual  conferences  on 
account  of  said  fund,  and  also  the  expenditures 
made;  and  he  shall  also  make  a  full  and  detailed 
exhibit  of  such  receipts  and  expenditures  for  the 
term  of  four  years  to  the  General  Conference. 


l'J6  MINISTERIAL   SUPPORT.        [Chap.  VII, 

Sujrport  of  Presiding  Elders. 
There  shajl  be  annually,  in  every  district,  a 
meeting  composed  of  one  steward  from  each 
c.u'cuit  and  station,  to  be  selected  by  the  quar- 
terly conference,  whose  duty  it  shall  be,  with 
I  he  advice  of  the  presiding  elder,  (who  shall 
preside  in  such  meeting,)  to  make  an  estimate 
of  the  amount  necessary  to  famish  a  comfort- 
able support  to  the  presiding  elder,  and  to  ap- 
portion the  same,  including  house-rent  and  trav- 
eling expenses,  and  also  the  claim  of  the  bishops 
assessed  to  the  district  by  the  annual  conference, 
among  the  different  circuits  and  stations  in  the 
distinct,  according  to  their  several  ability  ;  and 
in  all  cases  the  presiding  elder  shall  share 
with  the  bishop  and  preachers  in  his  district  in 
proportion  with  what  the}'  have  respectively  re- 
ceived ;  but  if  there  be  a  surplus  of  money  raised, 
he  shall  receive  such  surplus,  provided  he  do 
not  receive  more  than  his  allowance. 

Support  of  Ministers  and  Preachers. 
It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  quarterly  confer- 
ence of  each  circuit  and  station,  at  the  session 
immediately  preceding  the  annual  conference,  to 
appoint  an  estimating  committee,  who  shall  make 
an  estimate  of  the  amount  necessary  to  furnish 
a  comfortable  support  to  the  preacher  or  preach- 


3ec-   I.]  ALLOWANCE.  197 

ers  stationed  among  them,  taking  into  consid 
eration  the  number  and  condition  of  the  family 
or  families  of  such  preacher  or  preachers,  which 
estimate  shall  be  subject  to  the  action  of  the 
quarterly  conference ;  and  to  which  shall  be 
added  the  amount  apportioned  for  the  support 
of  the  bishops  and  presiding  elder;  and  the 
stewards  shall  provide  by  such  methods  as  they 
may  judge  best  to  meet  such  amount.  The 
traveling  and  moving  expenses  of  the  preachers 
shall  not  be  reckoned  as  a  part  of  the  estimate, 
but  be  paid  by  the  stewards  separately.  The 
quarterly  conference  shall  also  make  provision 
for  the  support  of  any  superannuated  preacher, 
or  the  widow  or  child  of  any  deceased  preacher, 
within  its  bounds,  and  shall  send  estimate  to  the 
annual  conference  with  which  claimant  is  con- 
nected. 

Methods  of  making  up  any  Deficiency. 

The  more  effectually  to  raise  the  amount 
necessary  t  >  meet  the  above-mentioned  allow- 
ances of  the  effective  ministers  and  preachers, 
let  the  stewards  estimate  the  amount  needed 
monthly.  Then  ascertain  from  each  member 
of  the  Church,  and,  as  far  as  practicable,  from 
each  attendant  of  the  congregation,  what  each 
will  give  toward  such  expenses. 

Let  these  sums  be  entered  by  the  recording 


IDS  MINISTERIAL   SUPPORT.         [Chap.  VI i. 

steward  in  a  book  which  he  shall  keep  as  treas- 
urer of  the  board  of  stewards.  Ir'  the  total 
amount  of  these  sums  does  not  equal  the  amount 
needed  monthly,  then  let  the  stewards  apportion 
the  deficiency  among  all  such  as  are  willing,  for 
Christ's  sake,  to  assume  such  deficiency,  setting 
down  to  each  person,  with  his  consent,  the  ad- 
ditional amount  which  they  think  he  ought 
monthly  t<  pay. 

Let  the  stewards  then  adopt  and  carry  out  a 
plan  by  which  every  one — except  such  as  prefer 
to  make  weekly  contributions  through  their 
class-leaders — shall  have  the  opportunity  of 
regularly,  contributing  each  month,  or  oftener, 
not  grudgingly  nor  of  necessity,  the  sum  which 
has  been  pledged  by  him.  Let  these  contribu- 
tions be  paid  over  regularly  to  the  recording 
steward  or  class-leader,  and  be  brought  up  by  him 
to  the  leaders'  meeting  or  quarterly  conference, 
as  the  case  may  be.  The  recording  steward 
shall  keep  an  individual  account  of  all  these 
pledges  and  contributions,  and  shall  pay  over 
the  same,  under  the  direction  of  the  stewards, 
to  the  preachers  authorized  to  receive  them. 

To  provide  to  meet  the  claims  that  may  be 
presented  and  determined  at  the  annual  confer- 
ence, every  preacher  shall  make  an  annual  col- 
lection in  every  congregation  of  his  charge,  and 


goc.  L]  ALLOWANCE.  199 

the  money  so  collected  shall  be  lodged  in  the 
hands  of  the  steward  or  stewards,  and  brought 
or  sent  to  the  ensuing  annual  conference. 

3.  The  Chartered  Fund  was  established  in 
1776,  and  was  designed  to  relieve  the  distresses 
and  supply  the  deficiencies  of  the  itinerant  and 
superannuated  ministers  and  preachers  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  the  United 
States  of  America,  who  remain  in  connection 
with,  and  continue  subject  to  the  order  and 
control  of,  the  General  Conference,  and  also  for 
the  relief  of  the  wives  and  children,  widows 
and  orphans,  of  such  preachers.  The  amount  of 
the  invested  funds,  as  reported  in  1884,  is 
$46,284  20.  The  income  is  divided  equally 
among  the  several  annual  conferences,  now 
amounting  to  more  than  one  hundred. 

£.  There  is  no  specific  rule  which  determines 
what  shall  constitute  traveling  expenses.  This 
matter  is  very  wisely  left  for  the  stewards  and 
preacher  to  arrange,  subject  to  a  reference  tc 
the  quarterly  conference. 

5.  The  traveling  expenses  of  editors  appointed 
by  the  General  Conference  include  those  ex- 
penses only  which  are  incurred  by  moving  to 
the  place  of  their  appointment,  and  in  going 


200  MINISTERIAL   SUPPORT.        [Chap.  VII, 

to  and  returning  from  the  annual  sessions  of 
the  conferences  of  which  they  are  members. 
(Gen.  Conf.  Jonr.,  1848,  pp.  112,  113.) 

6.  The  rule  authorizing  tha  appointment  of 
an  estimating  committee  was  formed  by  the 
General  Conference  of  1816.  This  committee 
must  be  composed  of  members  of  the  Church  ; 
but  the  rule  does  not  require  that  they  should 
be  members  of  the  quarterly  conference. 

It  is  required  that  this  committee  be  ap- 
pointed at  the  last  quarterly  conference  in  each 
ecclesiastical  year,  that  it  may  be  prepared  to 
present  its  report  to  the  first  quarterly  confer- 
ence in  the  conference  year. 

The  report  of  the  estimating  committee  is 
subject  to  the  action  of  the  quarterly  conference, 
and  hence  it  may  increase  or  diminish  the  es- 
timated amount. 

In  making  its  estimate  the  committee  should 
simply  consider  the  question,  What  is  a  suitable 
amount  to  furnish  a  comfortable  support  for  the 
preacher  or  preachers  stationed  among  them  ? 
Every  circumstance  should  be  duly  considered  : 
the  condition  of  the  preacher's  family,  whether 
sickly  or  otherwise  ;  the  state  of  the  market, 
and  the  expensiveness  of  the  place  where  the 
preacher  resides.  The  social  position  of  the 
preacher  should  not  be  overlooked.  He  should 


Sec.  I.]  ALLOWANCE.  201 

be  enabled  to  live  respectably  among  his  con- 
gregation, and  not  be  so  reduced,  by  a  stinted 
policy,  that  he  who  should  not  be  unmindful  to 
entertain  strangers  be  necessitated  to  turn  away 
angels  from  his  door. 

7.  Whenever  any  claimant  on  the  funds  of  a 
conference  shall  be  in  debt   to  the  Book  Con- 
cern, the  conference  of  which  he  is   a   mem- 
ber has  power  to  appropriate  the  amount  of 
such  claim,  or  any  part  of  it,  to  the  payment 
of  said  debt. 

8.  It  is  general  usage  for  the  society  to  pay 
any  expenses  which  may  be  incurred  in  supply- 
ing the  pulpit   on  the   Sabbath  in  which  the 
preacher  is  absent  at  the  annual  conference. 

9.  When    a    preacher    is    absent    from    his 
charge,  in  obedience  to   the   authority  of  the 
Church,  as  delegate  to  the  General  Conference, 
member  of  the   General   Mission    Committee, 
etc.,  he  is  entitled  to  his  full  salary  as  a  regular 
pastor. 

10.  When  an  effective  preacher,  by  the  ap- 
pointment of  the  bishop  and  the  recommenda- 
tion of  an  annual  conference,  serves  a  corpora- 
tion as  professor,  agent  of  the  American  Bible 


202  MINISTERIAL   SUPPORT.          [Chap.  VII, 

Society,  etc.,  it  is  understood  that  he  has  made 
a  specific  stipulation  in  regard  to  his  support 
and  that  he  thereby  releases  his  claim,  while 
employed  in  such  service,  on  the  conference 
funds. 


11.  "  When  a  member  of  the  annual  confer- 
ence is  accused  of  crime  in  the  interval  of  his 
conference  sessions,  and  is  suspended  by  a  com- 
mittee and  subsequently  convicted  by  his  con- 
ference, and  expelled,  his  claim  upon  the  funds 
of  the   conference   shall   cease  from    the  time 
of  his  suspension." — Gen.    Conf.   Jour.,   1860, 
p.  303. 

A  violation  of  covenant  vows  works  a  for- 
feiture of  all  disciplinary  claims. 

12.  The   claim    of  a  widow   of  a   traveling 
preacher  on  the  funds  of  the  conference  does 
not   depend    upon    her  Christian  character,  or 
her   connection   with  the   Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  ;  but  if  she  marries  she  ceases  to  be  a 
claimant. 

13.  The  British  Wesleyan  Connection  has  a 
specific  rule   that  those   preachers   who  marry 
widows  having  issue  by  their  former  husbands, 
shall  have  no  assistance,  either  from  the  public 


cJec.  II.]  ALLOWANCE. 

funds  or  from  the  circuits  in  which  they  labor 
for  the  children  of  the  former  marriage.  Such 
is  the  usage  among  us.  But  a  child  legally 
adopted  by  a  preacher  is  a  disciplinary  claimant 
upon  the  funds  of  the  conference. 

SECTION  II. — Stewards. 

1.  The  following  is  Mr.  Weslev's  account  of 

o  •/ 

the  origin  of  stewards :  "  In  a  few  days  some  of 
them  said,  '  Sir,  we  will  not  sit  under  you  for 
nothing;  we  will  subscribe  quarterly.'  I  said, 
'  I  will  have  nothing,  for  I  want  nothing.  My 
fellowship  supplies  me  with  all  I  want.'  One 
replied,  '  Nay,  but  you  want  a  hundred  and 
fifteen  pounds  to  pay  for  the  lease  of  the  Fotind- 
ery,  and  likewise  a  large  sum  of  money  to  put 
it  into  repair.'  On  this  consideration.  I  suffered 
them  to  subscribe.  And  when  the  society  met 
I  asked,  '  Who  wiH  take  the  trouble  of  receiv- 
ing this  money,  and  paying  it  where  it  is  need- 
ful ? '  One  said,  '  I  will  do  it,  and  keep  the 
account  for  you.'  So  here  was  the  first  steward. 
Afterward  I  desired  one  or  two  more  to  help 
me  as  stewards,  and  in  process  of  time  a  greater 
number." 

2.  "The    business   of   stewards,"    says   Mr. 
Wesley,  in  his  usual  laconic  style,  "  is, — 


2(M  MINISTERIAL   SUPPORT.          [Chap.  VII, 

a.  "To  manage  the  temporal  things  of  the 
society. 

J.  "To  receive  the  subscriptions  and  contri- 
butions. 

c.  "To  expend  what  is  needful,  from  time  to 
time. 

d.  "  To  send  relief  to  the  poor. 

e.  "  To  keep  an  exact  account  of  all  receipts 
and  expenses. 

f.  "  To  inform  the  minister  if  any  of  the  rules 
of  the  society  are  not  punctually  observed. 

g.  "  To  tell   the   preachers   in    love,  if  they 
think  any  thing  amiss  either  in  their  doctrine  or 
life. 

"  The  rules  of  stewards  are : 

a.  "  Be  frugal.  Save  every  thing  that  can  be 
saved  honestly. 

5.  "  Spend  no  more  than  you  receive.  Con- 
tract no  debts. 

c.  "  Have  no  long  accounts.     Pay  every  thing 
within  the  week,  or  as  soon  as  possible. 

d.  "  Give  none  that  asks  relief  either  an  ill 
word  or  an  ill  look.     Do  not  hurt  if  you  cannot 
help  them. 

e.  "  Expect  no  thanks  from  man." —  Wesley's 
Works,  vol.  v,  p.  185. 

The  duties  of  stewards  are  numerous  and  re- 
sponsible. They  relate,  in  part,  to  the  effective 


3ec.  II. J  STEWARDS.  205 

operations  of  the  pastorate,  and  in  part  to  the 
pecuniary  arrangements  of  the  circuit.  Though 
stewards  may  have  but  little  to  do  in  determin- 
ing the  estimated  amount  to  be  raised,  yet  the 
amount  which  is  actually  paid  for  the  support 
of  the  pastor  depends  almost  exclusively  upon 
their  efforts.  Stewards  are  ordinarily  the  types 
of  the  pecuniary  character  of  the  societies  which 
they  represent.  Where  energetic  and  effective 
stewards  are  employed,  poverty  will  vie  with 
wealth,  and  comparatively  small  and  feeble 
societies  will  amply  sustain  the  institutions  of 
the  Church. 

Stewards  should  endeavor  to  induce  all  the 
members  of  the  Church  to  contribute  statedly  to 
every  benevolent  enterprise,  as  a  matter  of  re- 
ligious principle.  .  Spasmodic  efforts  to  raise  an 
unusual  amount  for  any  institution,  or  for  some 
admired  preacher,  are  always  attended  with 
disastrous  reaction,  and  greatljT  embarrass  all 
financial  arrangements.  The  amount  which  is 
paid  ought  never  to  be  graduated  by  the  popu- 
larity of  the  preacher,  but  by  the  condition  of 
the  Church,  and  the  ability  with  which  God  has 
blessed  it. 

Stewards  should  endeavor  to  raise  the  preach- 
er's claim  by  quarterly  installments.  This  plan 
can  be  executed  in  most  places,  and  can  be  at 


206  MINISTERIAL  SUPPORT.         [Chap.  VII 

•east  partially  executed  in  all.  The  expenses 
of  the  preacher  in  moving  npon  the  circuit 
should  be  paid  to  him  on  his  arrival  at  his 
charge.  This  amount  has  actually  been  paid 
by  the  preacher  in  advance,  in  his  efforts  to 
serve  them  ;  and  justice  demands  that  actual 
expenditures  for  their  benefit  should  immedi- 
ately be  met.  Promptitude  under  such  circum- 
stances is  appreciated  far  beyond  the  intrinsic 
value  of  the  offering  made :  it  furnishes  an  un- 
mistakable welcome  to  the  preacher,  and  a 
cordiality  most  gratifying  to  his  heart. 

Stewards  should  see  that  every  subscription 
is  collected  when  it  becomes  payable.  It  is  of 
no  avail  to  raise  subscriptions  unless  prompt  and 
systematic  efforts  are  made  for  their  collection. 

Every  regular  attendant  on  the  ministry  of 
the  word  should  be  solicited,  in  a  proper  man- 
ner, to  .aid  in  the  support  of  the  Gospel.  None 
will  be  offended  who  are  approached  with 
Christian  courtesy ;  and  the  privileges  which 
their  own  money  helps  to  secure  will  be  more 
highly  prized  by  them. 

The  steward  should  remember  that  if  he  fail 
to  discharge  his  duties,  the  cause  of  God  will 
inevitably  suffer.  No  other  member  of  the 
Church  feels  at  liberty  to  act  in  his  capacity 
without  appointment;  and  unless  the  finances 


Sec.  II. J  STEWARDS.  207 

of  the  Church  are  properly  managed,  the  min- 
istry must  be  embarrassed,  or  retire  from  their 
work. 

3.  The  preacher  in  charge,,  previous  to  1812, 
had  the  power  to  appoint  stewards.     Since  that 
time  he  has  possessed  only  the  right  of  nomina- 
tion— the  power  of  appointment  being  vested  in 
the  quarterly  conference. 

4.  Stewards  hold  their  office  for  one  year,  but 
may  be  reappointed  from  year  to  year.     They 
are  responsible  to  the  quarterly  conference  for 
the  faithful    discharge   of  their  official  duties; 
and  the  quarterly   conference    may  dismiss  or 
change  them  at  pleasure,  without  preferring  any 
formal  charge. 

5.  Since  the  year  1820,  one  of  the  stewards 
has    been    specifically    appointed    a    recording 
steward.     This  office,  however,  does  not  consti- 
tute him,  ex  offido,  the  secretary  of  the  quarterly 
conference.     His  duties  require  him  to  record 
the  doings  of  the  quarterly  conference,  and  the 
Sabbath-school  quarterly  reports.     In  other  re 
spects  the  prerogatives   and   duties   of  record- 
ing stewards   are  the  same   as  those   of  other 
stewards. 


208  MINISTERIAL   SUPPORT.        [Chap.  VII, 

6.  A  preacher  in  charge  has  no  right  to  ac- 
cept the  resignation  of  a  steward,  and  declare 
the   office   vacant.     The   quarterly   conference, 
which  confers  the  office,  can  alone  accept  of  the 
resignation. 

7.  When  two  or  more  circuits  or  stations  are 
united,  the  stewards  shall  hold  office  till  the  first 
quarterly  conference  shall  elect  a  new  board. 
(Gen.  Conf.  Jour.,  1868.) 


Chap.  VIII.]  RULES  OF   OBDER.  209 


.     CHAPTER  VIII. 
RULES  OF  ORDER. 

1. — Parliamentary  Rules. 

EVERY  pastor  will  frequently  be  called  to  pre- 
side over  the  deliberations  of  others,  and  hence 
should  be  well  versed  in  all  that  relates  to  the 
correct  and  orderly  management  of  deliberative 
bodies. 

The  preacher  in  charge  is  the  presiding  officer 
in  leaders'  meetings,  in  the  Sunday-school  board, 
in  the  meetings  of  such  boards  of  trustees  as  are 
appointed  according  to  Discipline,  in  quarterly 
conferences,  in  the  absence  of  the  presiding 
elder,  in  the  arbitration  and  trial  of  members, 
in  the  missionary  committees,  and  in  the  com- 
mittee of  local  preachers  called  to  investigate 
the  case  of  an  accused  local  preacher. 

2. — Temporary  Organisation. 

It  frequently  happens  that  a  temporary  or- 
ganization is  necessary.  In  such  cases,  some 

person   of  age,  or  distinction,  should  rise  and 
14 


210  KULES  OF   ORDER.  [Chap. 

call  the  meeting  to  order,  announcing  the  ar- 
rival of  the  time  of  the  meeting,  and  suggesting 
an  organization,  by  the  appointment  of  a  chair- 
man before  proceeding  to  business.  The  same 
person  should  act  until  a  chairman  is  selected. 
Some  four  or  five  persons  may  be  nominated  as 
chairman.  The  question  should  not  be  put 
until  every  nomination  that  is  desired  is  made. 
The  names  of  the  nominees  should  then  be  an- 
nounced, in  the  order  in  which  the  nominations 
were  made,  and  the  question  submitted  to  the 
assembly.  When  a  majority  of  votes  is  given 
for  any  candidate,  he  should  be  declared  presi- 
dent pro  tern.,  and  invited  to  the  chair,  without 
voting  upon  the  other  names. 

The  president  pro  Um.,  having  taken  the 
chair,  should  conduct  the  religious  services  of 
the  occasion,  or  call  upon  some  competent  person 
to  do  so. 

After  prayer,  a  secretary  pro  tern,  should  be 
appointed.  If  several  secretaries  are  appointed, 
the  one  first  named  is  the  principal  officer. 

In  all  deliberative  representative  assemblies  it 
is  necessary  to  ascertain  who  are  properly  mem- 
bers. This  should  be  done,  by  general- consent, 
either  before  or  after  the  permanent  organiza- 
tion, and  before  proceeding  to  any  other  business 
This  may  be  done  by  the  secretary,  who  may 


3hap.  VIII.]  RULES  OF  ORDER.  211 

receive  the  credentials  and  record  the  names  of 
members,  or  by  a  committee  appointed  for  this 
purpose. 

In  case  the  seat  of  a  member  is  contested,  he 
should  be  heard  in  his  own  defense,  and  then 
retire  until  the  case  is  determined.-  The  other 
members,  who  are  legally  appointed,  form  a 
court  to  determine  the  question  of  all  contested 
elections,  unless  they  refer  it  to  a  committee. 

3. — Permanent  Organisation. 

This  is  usually  done  in  one  of  two  ways. 
First,  by  raising  a  committee  to  nominate  a  full 
board  of  officers  for  the  association,  and  pro- 
ceeding to  ballot,  or  to  confirm  the  nomination 
by  vote  ;  or,  secondly,  by  promiscuously  nomi- 
nating the  different  officers  viva  voce,  and  then 
balloting  or  confirming  by  hand-vote. 

4. — Presiding  Office)'. 

The  duties  of  a  presiding  officer  are  the  fol- 
lowing : 

To  call  the  members  to  order  at  the  appointed 
time. 

To  conduct  the  religious  services. 

To  iJrect  the  roll  to  be  called  at  the  opening 


212  RULES  OF   ORDER.  [Chap.  VIIL 

of  each  session,  unless  otherwise  ordered,  and  the 
records  of  the  previous  meeting  to  be  read. 

To  announce  the  order  of  business,  if  any 
manifesto  has  been  put  forth  respecting  it. 

To  receive  all  messages  and  communications, 
and  announce  them  to  the  meeting. 

To  put  to  vote  all  questions  which  are  regu- 
larly submitted,  or  necessarily  arise  in  the  course 
of  the  proceedings,  and  declare  the  result. 

To  see  that  the  laws  of  debate,  and  due  order 
and  decorum,  are  observed  by  the  members. 

To  decide  all  questions  of  order. 

To  authenticate,  by  his  signature,  all  the  acts 
and  proceedings  of  the  assembly. 

To  appoint  committees,  when  directed  in  a 
particular  case,  or  when  a  standing  rule  re- 
quires it ;  and,  in  general,  to  obey  implicitly  its 
commands. 

The  chairman  ought  to  give  direct  and  serious 
attention  to  each  individual  while  speaking,  and 
to  hold  no  conversation  with  any  one  at  the 
time. 

The  utmost  impartiality  should  be  observed. 
Minorities  and  opponents  should  have  their  in- 
terests as  jealously  guarded  as  those  of  the 
majority,  or  of  most  intimate  friends. 

When  the  president  withdraws  from  the  chair, 
the  vice-president  should  tako  his  place.  If 


Chap.  VIII.]'  RULES   OF   ORDER.  213 

there  be  no  vice-president,  custom  allows  the 
president  to  appoint  a  chairman  during  his  tem- 
porary absence. 

If,  in  the  absence  of  the  president,  it  becomes 
necessary  to  choose  a  president  pro  tern.,  it  is 
the  duty  of  the  secretary  to  conduct  the  pro- 
ceedings. 

In  large  assemblies,  the  presiding  officer  may 
read  sitting,  but  should  rise  to  state  a  motion  or 
put  a  question. 

5. — Secretary. 

The  general  duties  of  the  recording  officer  oi 
a  deliberative  body  are  the  following  : 

To  keep  a  correct  record  of  the  proceedings 
of  the  assembly. 

To  read  all  papers  which  may  be  ordered  to 
be  read. 

To  notify  the  chairman  of  each  committee  of 
his  appointment,  giving  him  a  list  of  his  col- 
leagues, and  stating  the  business  referred  to 
them. 

To  authenticate,  by  his  signature,  all  the  acts 
of  the  assembly. 

To  preserve  all  the  papers  and  documents  of 
the  assembly,  and  allow  none  to  be  taken  froir. 
his  table  without  a  formal  leave  of  the  assembly. 

The  secretary,  if  a  member  of  the  body,  is  not 


214:  RULES  OF  ORDER.  [Chap.  Till 

deprived  of  the  privilege  of  taking  part  in  the 
deliberations  of  the  meeting. 

O 

The  secretary  should  stand  while  reading  or 
calling  the  roll  of  the  assembly. 

He  should  write  a  clear,  legible  hand;  and 
all  items  of  business,  for  the  sake  of  easy  refer- 
ence, should  be  recorded  in  separate  para- 
graphs. 

The  peculiar  duties  of  the  secretary  of  an  an- 
nual conference  are  the  following  : 

a.  To  aid  the  president  in  the  organization  of 
the  conference  by  reading  the  roll  of  the  mem- 
bers  at   the    opening  of  each   annual   session. 
This  is  usually  done  by    the   secretary  of  the 
previous  session. 

b.  To    furnish   the    bishop   with   answers   to 
questions  21st,  29th,  30th,  and  31st  of  the  busi- 
ness of  conference,  (Discipline,  T  78,)  for  the 
General  Minutes. 

G.  To  countersign  all  drafts  upon  the  Book 
Concern  and  Chartered  Fund. 

d.  To  report  annually  to  the  secretaries  of 
the   Missionary  Society  the  names  of  mission?: 
in  the  Conference,  and  the  sum  appropriated  to 
each.     (Discipline,  ^[  81.) 

e.  To  report  to  the  Sunday-School  Union  the 
number  and  condition  of  the  Sunday-schools  in 
the  Conference.     (Discipline,  *f  85.) 


Ohap.  VIII.]  RULES   OF  ORDER.  215 

The  journals  of  the  annual  conferences  are 
subject  to  the  inspection  of  the  General  Confer- 
ence, and  should  be  executed  in  the  bgst  man- 
ner, as  it  regards  penmanship,  arrangement, 
and  mode  of  reference.  The  heading  of  every 
page  should  give  the  date ;  and  the  margin, 
references  to  all  the  transactions  recorded. 

6. — Members. 

All  members  have  an  equal  right  to  submit 
propositions  to  the  assembly,  and  to  explain  and 
recommend  them  in  discussion. 

No  member  should  be  interrupted  when 
speaking,  except  by  the  president,  to  call  him 
to  order  when  he  departs  from  the  question, 
uses  personalities  or  disrespectful  language  ;  bot 
any  member  may  call  the  attention  of  the  prc^i- 
dent  to  the  subject  when  he  deems  a  speaker 
out  of  order:  and  any  member  may  explain,  if 
he  thinks  himself  misrepresented. 

A  member  who  violates  the  rules  of  decorum 
may  be  named  by  the  president;  that  is,  the 
president  may  declare  that  such  a  member, 
calling  him  by  name,  is  guilty  of  certain  im- 
proper conduct.  The  member  thus  accused  is 
entitled  to  be  heard  in  his  own  defense,  and 
must  then  withdraw. 

The  only  punishments  which  a  deliberative 


216  RULES   OF   ORDER.  [Chap.  VIII 

body  can  inflict  are  reprimanding,  prohibition 
to  speak  or  vote  for  a  specified  time,  and  expul- 
sion. It  may  require  the  offender  to  ask  par- 
don, on  pain  of  expulsion. 

Any  member  who  desires  to  speak  mast  re- 
spectfully address  the  chair. 

If  two  members  address  the  president  nearly 
at  the  same  time,  he  should  give  the  floor  to  the 
one  whose  voice  he  first  heard.  If  the  decision 
of  the  president  is  not  satisfactory  to  any  mem- 
ber, the  opinion  of  the  assembly  may  be  taken 

on  it. 

7.—  Motions. 

When  a  motion  has  been  made  and  seconded, 
the  presiding  officer  must  state  it  to  the  assem- 
bly before  it  is  in  their  possession. 

No  speech  should  be  made  without  a  motion, 
nor  after  a  motion  is  submitted,  until  it  is  sec- 
onded, and  stated  by  the  president. 

All  motions  or  resolutions,  introduced  by  any 
member,  must,  be  reduced  to  writing,  if  the 
president,  secretary,  or  any  two  members  re- 
quest it. 

According  to  the  rules  of  the  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives, and  those  of  the  General  Confer- 
ence, any  motion  or  resolution  may  be  with- 
drawn by  the  mover,  at  any  time,  before  decision 
or  amendment. 


Chap.  VIII.]  RULES  OF  ORDER.  217 

No  new  motion  or  resolution  can  be  made 
antil  the  one  under  consideration  is  disposed  of; 
which  may  be  done  by  adoption  or  rejection, 
unless  one  of  the  following  motions  should  in- 
tervene, which  motions  must  have  precedence 
in  the  order  in  which  they  are  placed,  namely, 
adjournment,  indefinite  postponement,  laying  on 
the  table,  reference  to  a  committee,  postpone- 
ment to  a  given  time,  a  substitute  which  may 
be  amended,  amendment. 

All  motions  should  be  put  in  an  affirmative 
and  not  in  a  negative  form. 

8. — Indefinite  Postponement. 
If  a  motion  has  been  indefinitely  postponed, 
it  cannot  be  called  up  or  resumed  during  that 
session.  If  a  negative  decision  has  been  given, 
it  has  no  effect  whatever  on  the  final  disposal  of 
the  question. 

9. — Laying  on  the  Table. 
This  motion  is  proper  when  the  assembly 
wishes  for  more  information  upon  the  subject. 
If  decided  in  the  affirmative,  the  principal  mo- 
tion, and  all  subsidiary  questions  connected  with 
it,  are  removed  from  before  the  assembly  until 
they  are  taken  up  again,  which  may  be  done  at 
any  time,  at  the  pleasure  of  the  assembly.  If 


218  RULES  OF  ORDER.  [Chap.  VIII 

they  are  not  taken  up,  it  is  equivalent  to  an  in- 
definite postponement. 

10. — Referring  to  a  Committee. 

When  a  proposition   is   regarded  with  favor 
and  some  modifications  are  desired,  it  is  usual  to 
refer  it  to  a  committee — to  the  standing  commit- 
tee, if  one  has  been  raised  on  that    subject ; 
otherwise,  to  a  select  committee. 

If  it  is  suggested  to  refer  it  both  to  a  standing 
and  to  a  select  committee,  the  question  should 
be  first  put  in  reference  to  the  standing  com- 
mittee. A  portion  only  of  a  subject  may  be 
referred,  and  different  portions  may  be  referred 
to  different  committees. 

If  a  committee  make  a  report,  and  the  as- 
sembly wish  for  certain  alterations  or  amend- 
ments, it  may  recommit  the  report. 

If  a  subject  is  referred  with  instructions, 
those  instructions,  of  course,  must  be  obeyed. 

11. — Division  of  a  Question. 
When  a  proposition  consists  of  two  or  more 
parts,  so  independent  and  distinct  that  if  one 
be  taken  away  the  others  will  remain  entire, 
and  it  is  supposed  that  the  assembly  may  ap- 
prove of  some  but  not  of  all  thv,  parts,  it  is 
frequently  more  desirable  to  resolve  it  into  its 


Oliap.  VIII.]  RULES  OF  ORDER.  219 

elementary  parts  than  to  attempt  to  modify  it  by 
amendments. 

Where  a  deliberative  body  has  adopted  no 
rule  providing  for  the  division  of  complicated 
questions,  no  division  should  take  place  without 
a  definite  motion  to  divide,  unless  a  unanimous 
consent  is  given. 

12. — Fitting  Blanks.  • 

When  blanks  are  left  for  the  assembly  to  fill, 
the  proposition  to  fill  is  not  an  amendment,  but 
an  original  motion. 

In  filling  blanks  where  different  numbers  are 
named,  the  question  should  be  put  first  on  the 
largest  sum  and  the  longest  time. 

13. — Amendments. 

The  mover  may  modify  or  accept  of  an 
amendment  when  it  is  made,  before  it  has  been 
stated  to  the  assembly  by  the  chairman.  In 
this  case  it  becomes  a  part  of  the  original  mo- 
tion. In  all  other  cases  it  must  be  put  as  a 
regular  amendment. 

Rules  respecting  Amendments. — Amendments 
may  be  made  in  three  ways:  by  striking  out 
certain  words,  or  by  inserting  certain  words,  or 
by  striking  out  some  and  inserting  other  words. 

1.  When  a  proposition  consists  of  several  sen- 


220  RULES   OF   ORDER.  [Chap.  VIII. 

tences  or  resolutions,  it  should  be  taken  np  in 
order,  and  each  paragraph  amended  according 
to  the  pleasure  of  the  assembly  :  and  when  it  is 
thus  passed  through,  it  is  not  deemed  orderly  to 
introduce  new  amendments  into  the  first  part  of 
the  proposition. 

2.  Every  amendment  may  be  amended  ;  but 
it    can   go   no   further.     There    cannot   be  an 
amendment  to  an  amendment  of  an  amendment. 
The  question   should    first   be  put  on  the  last 
amendment,  and  proceed  in  that  order. 

3.  Whatever  is  agreed  to  by  the  assembly,  on 
a  vote,  either  adopting  or  rejecting  a  proposed 
amendment,  cannot    afterward   be    altered    or 
amended. 

4.  The  converse  of  the  above  rule   is  true. 
Whatever  is  disagreed  to  by  the  assembly,  on  a 
vote,  cannot  afterward  be  moved  again. 

Striking  out. — If  an  amendment  to  strike  out 
is  rejected,  it  cannot  be  moved  again  to  strike 
out  the  same  words,  or  a  part  of  them  ;  but  it 
may  be  moved  to  strike  out  the  same  words,  or 
a  part  of  them,  with  other  words.  But  if  the 
amendment  to  strike  out  is  agreed  to,  it  cannot 
afterward  be  moved  to  insert  the  same  words,  or 
a  part  of  them,  unless  it  is  proposed  to  insert 
other  words  in  connection  with  them.  The  same 
rule  applies  in  reference  to  inserting  the  same 


Chap.  VIILj  RULES   OF   ORDEB.  221 

words,  or  a  part  of  them.  The  motion  to  amend 
those  relating  to  striking  out  and  inserting  ap- 
plies as  in  other  cases  of  amendment. 

Striking  out  and  inserting. — If  the  motion  is 
divided,  the  question  is  first  to  be  taken  on  srik- 
ing  out ;  and  if  that  is  decided  in  the  affirm- 
ative, then  on  inserting:  but  if  the  former  is 
decided  in  the  negative,  the  latter  of  course  falls. 

If  the  motion  to  strike  out  and  insert  is  put 
undivided,  and  decided  in  the  negative,  the 
same  motion  cannot  again  be  renewed.  But  it 
may  be  moved  to  strike  out  and, 

1.  Insert  nothing ;  or, 

2.  Insert  other  words;  or, 

3.  Insert  the  same,  with  other  words  ;  or, 

4.  Insert   a  part  of  the   same  words   with 
others;  or, 

5.  Strike  out  the  same  words  with  others,  and 
insert  the  same ;  or, 

6  Strike  out  a  part  of  the  same  words  with 
others,  and  insert  the  same  ;  or, 

7.  Strike  out   other    words,  and    insert    the 
same ;  or, 

8.  Insert  the  same  words  without  striking  out 
any  thing.     (Ref.  Cushing's  Manual.) 

On  putting  the  question,  first  read  the  pas- 
sage proposed  to  be  amended  as  it  stands,  then 
the  words  proposed  to  be  struck  out  or  in- 


222  RULES   OF   ORDER.  [Cliap.VIIL 

serted  ;  and,  lastly,  the  whcle  passage  as  it  will 
stand  if  the  amendment  be  adopted. 

Defeating  a  Proposition. — Amendments  may 
be  made  to  a  proposition,  which  will  not  onty 
modify  the  meaning,  but  convey  a  directly  op- 
posite sense  ;  and  often,  in  legislative  bodies, 
bills  are  amended  by  striking  out  all  after  the 
enacting  clause,  and  inserting  a  new  bill ;  and 
resolutions  are  amended  by  striking  out  all  after 
the  words  "  resolved  that,"  and  inserting  a  prop- 
osition of  an  entirely  different  character. 

14. — Privileged  Questions. 

Questions  of  this  nature  are  of  three  kinds  : 
1.  Motions  to  adjourn.  2.  Motions  relating  to 
*he  rights  and  privileges  of  the  assembly,  or  of 
its  members  individually.  3.  Motions  for  the 
orders  of  the  day. 

15. — Adjournment. 

A  simple  motion  to  adjourn  cannot  be 
amended,  but  must  be  decided  without  debate. 
A  motion  to  adjourn  to  a  particular  day  is  de- 
batable, and  may  be  amended  in  regard  to  time. 

"  A  motion  to  adjourn  is  not  in  order,  1.  When 
a  member  is  speaking  ;  2.  When  a  vote  is  being 
taken  on  any  question  ;  3.  A  motion  to  adjourn 
being  negatived,  cannot  be  renewed  until  some 


Chap.  VIII.]  RULES  OF   ORDER.  223 

other  proposition  is  made,  or  other  business 
transacted." — Matthias's  Manual,  p.  72  ;  Gush- 
ing's  Elements  of  Law  and  Practice,  p.  545. 

An  adjournment  without  day  is  equivalent  to 
a  dissolution. 

When  a  question  is  interrupted  by  adjourn- 
ment before  any  vote  is  taken  upon  it,  it  is 
thereby  removed  from  the  assembly,  and  does 
not  stand  before  it  at  its  next  regular  session, 
but  must  be  brought  forward  in  the  usual  wa}r. 
But  an  adjourned  special  meeting  is  regarded 
as  a  continuation  of  a  former  meeting,  and  the 
business  should  be  resumed  the  same  as  if  no 
adjournment  had  taken  place. 

16. — Orders  of  the  Day. 

When  the  consideration  of  a  subject  has  been 
assigned  by  the  assembly  to  a  certain  day,  it  is 
called  the  order  of  the  day. 

If  any  other  proposition  arise  on  the  day  as- 
signed for  the  consideration  of  any  subject,  a  mo- 
tion for  the  order  of  the  day  will  supersede  such 
proposition,  and  must  be  first  put  and  decided. 

To  entitle  this  motion  to  precedence,  it  must 
be  for  the  orders  of  the  day  generally,  if  there 
is  more  than  one,  and  not  for  any  particular 
subject ;  and  the  orders  must  be  taken  up  in  the 
order  in  which  they  stand. 


224  RULES   OF   ORDER.  [Chap.  VIII. 

It'  a  subject  is  assigned  for  any  particular 
hour,  the  question  to  proceed  to  it  is  not  a 
privileged  one  until  the  hour  has  arrived;  but 
if  no  hour  is  fixed,  the  order  is  for  the  entire 
day  and  every  part  of  it. 

If  the  motion  for  the  orders  of  the  day  pre- 
vails, the  original  question  is  removed  from  the 
consideration  of  the  assembly,  in  the  same  man- 
ner as  if  it  had  been  interrupted  by  an  adjourn- 
ment. If  the  motion  is  decided  in  the  negative, 
the  orders  of  the  day  must  be  superseded  until 
that  subject  is  disposed  of. 

The  orders  of  the  day,  unless  disposed  of  on 
the  day  assigned,  fall,  and  must  be  renewed  for 
some  other  day. 

1 7. — Incidental  Questions, 

Such  as  questions  of  order,  motions  for  the 
reading  of  papers,  leave  to  withdraw  a  motion, 
suspension  of  a  rule,  and  amendment  of  an 
amendment,  must  be  decided  before  the  ques- 
tions which  gave  rise  to  them. 

18. — Questions  of  Order. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  presiding  officer  to  en- 
force the  rules  of  the  assembly  ;  and  any  mem- 
ber noticing  a  breach  of  the  rule  may  call  his 


Chap.  YIIL]  RULES   OF   ORDER.  225 

attention  to  it,  and  insist  upon  the  enforcement 
of  it. 

When  a  question  of  order  arises,  all  other 
business  must  be  suspended  until  that  point  is 
settled.  The  presiding  officer  must  decide  the 
point  without  debate.  If  the  decision  is  not 
satisfactory,  any  member  may  appeal  to  the  as- 
sembly. The  question  should  then  be  stated  : 
"•  Shall  the  decision  of  the  chair  stand  as  the 
decision  of  the  assembly  ? "  When  it  is  thus 
stated  it  is  debatable,  and  the  presiding  officer 
may  participate  in  the  debate.  When  a  ques- 
tion has  been  put,  and  the  decision  announced, 
if  any  member 'alleges  that  the  question  was  not 
understood,  the  presiding  officer  may  recall  his 
decision  and  put  the  question  again. 


19. — Previous  Question. 

The  design  of  the  previous  question  is  chiefly 
for  suppressing  debate,  and  taking  immediate 
action  on  the  main  question. 

The  question  is  put  in  this  form  :  "  Shall  the 
main  question  be  now  put?"  If  it  is  decided 
in  the  negative,  the  debate  continues ;  if  in  the 
affirmative,  the  vote  must  be  at  once  taken, 
in  the  form  in  which  the  question  exists  at  the 

time. 

15 


226  RULES   OF   ORDER.  [Chap.  VIB 

A  previous  question  cannot  be  amended.  By 
the  rules  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  the 
previous  question  can  only  be  admitted  when 
demanded  by  a  majority  of  the  members  pres- 
ent ;  and  if  it  is  ordered  it  brings  the  House  to 
a  direct  vote  upon  a  motion  to  commit,  if  such 
motion  shall  have  been  made';  and  if  this  mo- 
tion does  not  prevail,  then  upon  amendments 
reported  by  a  committee,  if  any ;  then  upon 
pending  amendments,  and  then  upon  the  main 
question.  It  is  not  in  order  to  move  the  pre- 
vious question  unless  the  assembly  has  adopted 
the  rule  for  its  government.  When  the  previous 
question  is  moved  and  seconded  by  the  requisite 
number,  all  further  amendments  and  discussion 
must  cease.  The  president  rises  and  says,  "  The 
previous  question  has  been  moved  and  sec- 
onded,— the  question  before  the  meeting  is, 
'  Shall  the  main  question  be  now  put  ? ' :  If  it 
is  decided  in  the  affirmative,  the  question  should 
then  be  put,  first  on  the  amendments,  and  then 
on  the  main  proposition. 


20. — Order  of  Proceeding. 

When  the  assembly  does  not  prescribe  any 
order  of  proceeding,  the  presiding  officer  may 
present  any  regular  business  according  to  his 


Jhap.  YIIL]  EULES   OF  ORDER.  227 

discretion.     In  an  annual  conference  the  re°ru- 

o 

lar  disciplinary  questions  are  presented  by  the 
bishop  by  disciplinary  authority,  and  at  his  dis- 
cretion as  to  time  and  circumstances. 

In  considering  a  proposition  consisting  of 
several  paragraphs,  the  paper  should  first  be 
read  entirely  through  by  the  secretary,  then  .a 
second  time  by  the  presiding  oflBcer  or  secretary, 
pausing  at  the  close  of  every  paragraph,  that 
amendments  may  be  made  if  desired  ;  and  when 
*he  whole  paper  has  been  gone  through  with, 
in  this  order,  the  final  question  should  be  put 
on  agreeing  to,  or  adopting,  the  whole  paper  as 
amended  or  unarnended. 

When  there  is  a  preamble,  it  should  be  con- 
sidered after  the  disposal  of  the  resolutions  or 
propositions  under  it.  When  a  paper  has  been 
referred  to  a  committee,  and  reported  back  with 
amendments,  these  amendments  must  first  be 
disposed  of,  unless  amended,  before  other  amend- 
ments are  introduced. 

It  is  deemed  an  unparliamentary  and  abusive 
proceeding  to  introduce  a  proposition,  and  at 
the  same  time  move  the  previous  question.  In 
such  cases  it  is  recommended  by  Judge  Gush- 
ing to  take  no  notice  of  the  motion  for  the  pre- 
vious question. 


228  RULES  OF   ORDER.  [Chap.  YI1L 

21. — Order  in  Debate. 

The  presiding  officer  is  not  presumed  to  enter 
.nto  the  debate ;  but  he  is  allowed  to  state  mat- 
ters of  fact  within  his  knowledge,  to  inform  the 
assembly  on  points  of  order  when  called  upon 
to  do  so,  or  when  it  is  necessary  to  do  so;  and 
on  appeals  from  his  decision  on  questions  of 
order,  he  may  address  the  assembly  in  debate. 

A  member  rising  to  address  the  assembly 
must  respectfully  address  himself  to  the  pres- 
ident, and  not  proceed  until  his  name  is  called 
by  that  officer. 

When  two  or  more  members  rise  at  nearly 
the  same  time,  the  president  must  name  the 
member  who  is  first  to  speak.  The  person  whose 
voice  is  first  heard  is  entitled  to  the  floor.  If 
the  assembly  is  not  satisfied  with  the  decision  of 
the  chair,  the  question  should  be  put  first  in 
reference  to  the  person  named  by  the  president ; 
and  if  it  is  decided  in  the  negative,  then  upon 
the  name  of  the  person  for  whom  the  floor  is 
claimed  in  preference  to  him. 

When  a  person  gives  way  to  another  to 
speak,  he  really  resigns  the  floor,  and  can  retain 
it  only  by  general  consent,  or  the  vote  of  the 
assembly. 

When  the  presiding  officer  rises  to  speak,  any 


Chap.  VII I.J  RULES   OF   ORDER.  229 

other  member  should  be  seated  until  he  is  first 
heard  ;  but  this  does  not  authorize  any  presiding 
officer  to  interrupt  a  speaker  unless  he  is  out  of 
order. 

Every  member  should  confine  himself  directly 
to  the  subject  of  debate;  but  the  presiding 
officer  should  not  generally  interpose,  unless  the 
remarks  are  manifestly  irrelevant. 

When  called  to  order  for  irrelevancy,  the 
speaker  may  proceed,  unless  a  motion  prevail 
that  he  is  out  of  order.  And  in  this  case,  by 
usual  parliamentary  rules,  he  may  proceed,  if 
he  abandons  his  objectionable  course  of  remark ; 
but  by  the  Rules  of  the  House  of  Representatives 
such  speakers  are  not  allowed  to  proceed,  if  any 
member  objects,  without  leave  of  the  House. 

No  member  should  speak  more  than  once 
upon  the  same  question  without  the  permission 
of  the  assembly,  unless  it  be  to  explain,  although 
the  debate  on  the  question  may  be  continued 
through  several  days. 

Respectful  attention  should  be  paid  to  every 
speaker. 

If  a  member  uses  offensive  and  abusive  lan- 
guage toward  other  members,  he  may  be  stopped 
by  one  or  more  rising  for  that  purpose,  or  by 
the  president ;  and  the  words  objected  to  should 
be  written  down  by  the  secretary,  that  the 


230  RULES  OF   ORDER,  [Chap.  VIII 

offender    may    disclaim    or    apologize    for   the 
offense,  or  receive  the  censure  of  the  assembly. 

22. — Taking  the  Question. 

A  proposition  made  to  a  deliberative  body  is 
called  a  motion;  when  propounded  to  the  as- 
sembly for  reception  or  rejection,  it  is  denorni 
nated  a  question;  when  adopted  it  becomes  the 
order,  resolution,  or  vote  of  the  assembly. 

Strictly  speaking,  no  question  can  arise  in  a 
deliberative  assembly  without  a  motion  being 
first  made  and  seconded  ;  yet  sometimes,  for  the 
dispatch  of  business,  the  presiding  officer  takes 
it  for  granted  that  a  motion  has  been  made,  and 
puts  the  question  accordingly. 

The  question  being  stated,  the  president  puts 
it  first  in  the  affirmative  :  "  As  many  as  are  of 
opinion  that,  [repeating  the  question,]  say  Aye," 
or  "  raise  your  hands ;"  and,  putting  it  in  the 
negative,  "  As  many  as  are  of  a  different  opin- 
ion," etc. 

If  the  presiding  officer  is  doubtful  as  to  the 
majority  of  voices,  he  may  put  the  question  a 
second  time ;  or,  if  he  is  still  doubtful,  or  a 
member  doubts  the  vote,  he  may  direct  the  as- 
sembly to  divide,  and  appoint  tellers  to  return 
the  several  divisions  of  the  house  ;  or  the  secre- 
tary to  count  the  number  who  rise  in  voting. 


•Jlfap.  VIII.]  RULES   OF  ORDER.  231 

Every  person  is  bound,  unless  excused,  to  vote 
on  every  question. 

A  person  not  present  when  the  vote  is  taken, 
cannot  vote  afterwards  without  permission  of 
the  assembly. 

If  the  members  are  equally  divided  upon  a 
question,  the  presiding  officer  ordinarily  may 
give  the  casting  vote.  This  rule,  however,  does 
not  apply  to  the  president  of  annual,  of  district. 
or  of  quarterly  conferences. 

If  a  question  arises  upon  a  point  of  order — 
for  example,  as  to  the  right  or  the  duty  of  a 
member  to  vote  while  a  division  is  taking 
place — the  presiding  officer  must  decide  it 
peremptorily,  subject  to  the  correction  of  the 
assembly  after  the  division  is  over. 

If  a  quorum  is  not  present  when  a  division 
takes  place,  there  can  be  no  decision. 

23. — Reconsideration. 

When  any  motion  or  resolution  has  been  car- 
ried in  the  affirmative  or  negative,  it  is  in  order 
for  aiiy  member  who  voted  in  the  majority  to 
move  for  a  reconsideration  of  it. 

The  passage  of  a  resolution  to  reconsider 
places  the  question  where  it  was  before  decis- 
ion, and  leaves  it  open  for  discussion,  amend- 
ment, adoption,  or  rejection. 


232  RULES  OF   ORDER.  [Chap.  Till. 

24. —  Comm  ittees. 

Committees  appointed  to  consider  a  particular 
subject  are  called  select  committees ;  those  ap- 
pointed to  consider  all  subjects  of  a  similar  na- 
ture are  denominated  standing  committees. 

It  is  customary,  in  all  deliberative  bodies,  to 
constitute  a  majority  of  the  committee  of  such 
persons  as  are  known  to  be  favorably  inclined 
to  the  measure  proposed. 

The  person  first  named  on  a  committee  is  the 
chairman  to  call  the  first  meeting ;  but  every 
committee  may  elect  its  own  chairman  to  pre- 
side over  its  deliberations. 

They  may  receive  instructions  when  the  busi- 
ness is  at  first  referred  to  them,  or  at  any  sub- 
sequent period.  A  committee  is  not  at  liberty 
to  sit  while  the  assembly  is  sitting,  without 
special  permission.  It  can  act  only  when  regu- 
larly assembled  together  as  a  committee — a  sep- 
arate consultation  and  consent  is  not  binding. 
If  a  paper  has  been  referred  to  a  committee,  and 
it  is  entirely  opposed  to  it.  it  ought  not  to  sup- 
press it,  but  report  it  back  to  the  assembly  with 
its  objections.  The  paper  should  not  be  erased, 
interlined,  or  disfigured.  If  amendments  are 
proposed  to  it,  they  should  be  written  on  a  sep- 
arate piece  of  paper.  The  report  may  be  made 


Ohap.  VIII.]  RULES   OF   OKDER.  233 

to  tbe  assembly  by  the  chairman,  or  by  any  otber 
person  who  shall  be  authorized  to  do  so. 

25. — Reports  of  Committees. 

Every  report  should  be  written  fully  and 
plainly,  without  erasureor  interlinear  lines,  and 
signed  either  by  the  chairman  and  secretary,  or 
by  all  the  members  of  the  committee. 

A  report  may  be  received  by  direct  vote,  or 
the  general  consent  of  the  assembly. 

A  report  may  consist  merely  of  a  statement 
of  facts,  reasoning,  or  opinion,  or  simply  of  a 
series  of  resolutions,  or  of  both  combined. 
When  a  report  closes  with  a  series  of  resolu- 
tions, the  assembly  should  first  act  on  the  reso- 
lutions, and  then  on  the  preliminary  remarks. 

When  the  report  of  a  select  committee  is  ac- 
cepted, the  committee  is  discharged. 

26. — Minority  Report. 

"  Should  a  committee  not  be  unanimous  in 
opinion,  and  those  in  the  minority  be  desirous 
of  placing  their  views  before  the  meeting,  the 
matter  should  be  introduced  immediately  after 
the  majority  report  has  been  read.  A  member 
will  then  move  that  '  the  report  and  resolution 
thereto  attached  be  postponed  for  the  present, 
for  the  purpose  of  enabling  the  minority  to 


234  RULES   OF   ORDER.  [Chap.  VIII 

make  a  report  as  a  substitute.'  If  this  motion 
prevails,  as  is  almost  always  the  case,  the  mi- 
nority report  will  be  immediately  presented, 
received,  and  read.  It  is  then  in  order,  on  mo- 
tion, to  take  up  for  consideration  the  resolution 
attached  to  either  of  the  reports." — B.  Mat- 
thias's Manual,  p.  38. 

Or  when  the  majority  report  is  considered, 
the  minority  report  may  be  moved  as  an  amend- 
ment, or  a  substitute  for  it. 

A  protest  cannot  be  inserted  on  the  journal 
without  the  consent  of  the  majority. 

27. —  Committee  of  the.  Whole. 

When  a  subject  has  been  ordered  to  be  refer- 
red to  a  Committee  of  the  Whole,  the  mode  of 
organizing  such  committee  is  as  follows :  A 
motion  is  made  and  seconded  that  the  assembly 
do  now  resolve  itself  into  a  Committee  of  the 
Whole  for  the  purpose  of  considering  the  matter 

relating  to  ,  naming  the  subject.  If  the 

question  prevails,  the  president  will  call  some 
member  to  the  chair,  or  the  assembly  may  ap- 
point a  chairman. 

The  committee,  thus  organized,  is  under  the 
same  laws  that  govern  assemblies,  with  the  fol- 
lowing exceptions : 

1.  The  previous  question  cannot  be  moved. 


Jhap.  VITT.]  RULES   OF  ORDER.  235 

2.  The   presiding  officer  of  the  assembly  lias 
the  same  privilege  to  take  a  part  in  the  debate 
that  the  other  members  have. 

3.  They  cannot,  like  other  committees,  adjourn 
to  some  other  time  or  place  ;  but  when  they  rise, 
if  their  business  is  unfinished,  they  can  ask  per- 
mission of  the  assembly  to  sit  again. 

4.  They  cannot   refer   any  matter  to  a  sub- 
committee. 

5.  Members  are  not  restricted  as  to  the  times 
of  speaking. 

6.  The  yeas  and  nays  cannot  be  called. 

1.  There  is  no  appeal  from  the  decision  of  the 
chair  on  points  of  order. 

When  the  committee  has  finished  the  busi- 
ness referred  to  it,  a  member  moves  that  the 
committee  rise,  and  that  the  chairman,  or  some 
other  member,  report  their  proceedings  to  the 
assembly,  which,  being  carried,  the  president 
resumes  his  seat.  The  chairman  should  then 
say :  "  The  Committee  of  the  "Whole  hab  had 

under  consideration  the  matter  relating  to , 

and  has  instructed  me  to  report  that,"  etc. 
The  president  then  presents  the  report  for  the 
action  of  the  assembly.  If  its  business  is  un- 
finished, and  it  is  resolved  to  rise,  report  prog- 
ress, and  ask  leave  t:>  sit  again,  the  chairman 
says  :  "  The  Committee  of  the  Whole  has  liad 


RULES  OF  ORDER.  [Chap  VIIL 

* 

under  consideration   the   subject    of ;  but 

not  having  had  time  to  complete  the  same, 
has  instructed  me  to  report  that  it  has  made 
progress  therein,  and  begs  leave  to  sit  again.1' 
The  president  thereupon  puts  the  question  en 
giving  the  committee  leave  to  sit  again.  If 
leave  is  not  granted,  the  committee  is.  of  course 
dissolved. 

28. — Rules  of  the  General  Conference  MI  1884. 

1.  The  conference  shall    meet  at   9  o'clock 
A.M.,  and  adjourn  at  1  o'clock  P.M. ;  but  may 
alter  the  time  of  meeting  and  adjournment  at 
its  discretion. 

2.  The   president  shall    take  the   chair  pre- 
cisely at  the  hour  to  which  the  conference  stood 
adjourned,  and  cause  the  same  to  be  opened  by 
the  reading  of   the    Scriptures,    singing,    and 
prayer;    and  on  the  appearance  of  a  quorum 
shall  have  the  journal  of  the  preceding  session 
read  and  approved,  and  the  business  of  the  con- 
ference shall  proceed  in  the  following  order, 
namely : 

(1.)  The  roll  of  conferences  shall  be  called 
in  alphabetical  order  for  the  presentation  of  ap- 
peals, resolutions,  and  miscellaneous  business. 

(2.)  Reports,  lirst  of  the  standing,  and  then 
of  the  select  committees ;  provided,  always, 


Chap.  Vlir.j  BULKS  OF   ORDER.  237 

that  each  call  severally  shall  have  been  completed 
before  either  preceding  one  shall  be  repeated. 

3.  The  president  shall  decide  all   questions 
of   order,  subject  to  an  appeal  to  the  confer- 
ence ;  but  in  case  of  such  appeal  the  question 
shall  be  taken  without  debate,  except  that  the 
appellant  may  make  a  simple  statement  of  the 
grounds  of  his  appeal. 

4.  The   president  shall  appoint  all  commit- 
tees unless  otherwise  specially  ordered  by  the 
conference. 

5.  On  assigning  the  floor  to  any  member  of 
the  conference,  the  president  shall  distinctly  an- 
nounce the  name  of  the  member  to  whom  it  is 
assigned,  and  the  annual  conference  he  repre- 
sents. 

6.  Resolutions  shall  be  written  and  presented 
in  duplicate  by  the  mover,  and  also  all  motions, 
if  the  president,  secretary,  or  any  two  mem- 
bers request  it. 

7.  When  a  motion  is  made  and  seconded, 
or  a  resolution  introduced  and  seconded,  or  a 
report  presented  and  read  by  the  secretary   or 
stated  by  the  president,  it  shall  be  deemed  in 
possession  of  the  conference ;  but  any  motion 
or  resolution  may  be  withdrawn  by  the  mover, 
with  the  consent  of  the  conference,  at  any  time 
before  amendment  or  decision. 


238  RULER   OF   ORDER.  [Chap.  VIU. 

8.  The  motions  to  lay  on  the  table,  to  take 
from  the  table,  and  for  the  previous  question, 
shall  be  taken  without  debate. 

9.  No  new  motion  or  resolution  shall  be  en- 
tertained until  the  one  under  consideration  has 
been  disposed  of,  which  may  be  done  by  adop- 
tion or  rejection,  unless  one  of  the  following 
motions  should  intervene,  which  shall  have  pre- 
cedence in  the  order  in  which  they  are  placed, 
namely : 

(1.)  To  fix  the  time  to  which  the  conference 
shall  adjourn ; 

(2.)  To  adjourn  ; 

(3.)  To  take  a  recess ; 

(4.)  To  lay  on  the  table ; 

(5.)  For  the  previous  question  ; 

(6.)  To  postpone  to  a  given  time  ; 

(7.)  To  refer; 

(8.)  Substitute; 

(9.)  Amendment ; 

(10.)  To  postpone  indefinitely. 

A  motion  to  amend  an  amendment  shall  be 
in  order,  and  a  substitute  for  both  amendments 
may  be  received,  which  substitute  may  be 
amended,  and,  if  a  substitute  be  accepted,  it 
shall  operate  as  an  amendment  to  the  original 
proposition. 

10.  When  any  member  is  about  to  speak  in 


Chap.  VIII.]  RULES   OF   ORDER.  239 

debate,  or  to  deliver  any  matter  to  the  confer- 
ence, he  shall  rise  and  respectfully  address  the 
president,  but  shall  not  proceed  until  recog- 
nized by  him. 

11.  No  member  shall  be  interrupted  when 
speaking,  except  by  the  president  to  call  him 
to  order  when  he  departs  from  the  question,  or 
uses  personalities  or  disrespectful  language ;  but 
any  member  may  call  the  attention  of  the  presi- 
dent to  the  subject  when  he  deems  a  speaker 
out  of  order,   and  any  member   may   explain 
when  he  thinks  himself  misrepresented. 

12.  When  a  member  desires  to  speak  to  a 
question  of  privilege,  he  shall  briefly  state  the 
question ;  but  it  shall  not  be  in  order  for  him 
to  proceed  until  the  president  shall  have  de- 
cided it  a  privileged  question. 

13.  No  person  shall  speak  more  than  t\viee  on 
the  same  question,  nor  more  than  ten  minutes 
at  one  time,  without  leave  of  the  conference; 
nor  shall  any  person  speak  more  than  once  until 
every  member   choosing  to    speak   shall   have 
spoken.     Provided,  however,  that  a  committee 
making  a  report  shall  in  all  cases  be  entitled  to 
ten  minutes  to  close  the  debate,  either  to  oppose 
the  motion  to  lay  the  report  on  the  table,  or, 
this  permission  not  having  been  used,  to  close 
the  debate  on  the  motion  to  adopt.     The  com- 


240  RULES   OF   ORDER.  [Chap.  VIII. 

mittee  shall  not  be  deprived  of  its  right  to  close 
the  debate,  even  after  the  previous  question  has 
been  ordered. 

14.  "When  any  motion  or  resolution  shall  have 
been  acted  upon  by  the  conference,  it  shall  be 
in  order  for  any  member  who  voted  with  the 
prevailing  side  to  move  a  reconsideration  ;  but 
a  motion  to  reconsider  a  non-debatable  motion 
shall  be  decided  without  debate. 

15.  No  member  shall  absent   himself   from 
the  service  of  the  conference  without  leave,  un- 
less he  is  sick  or  unable  to  attend. 

16.  No  member  shall  be  allowed  to  vote  on 
any  question  who  is  not  within  the  bar  at  the 
time  when  such  question  shall  be  put  by  the 
president,  except   by  leave  of  the  conference 
when  such  member  has  been  necessarily  absent. 

17.  Every  member  who  is  within  the  bar  at 
the  time  a  question  is  put  shall  give  his  vote, 
unless  the  conference,  for  special  reasons,  shall 
excuse  him. 

18.  No  resolution  'altering  or  rescinding  any 
rule  of  Discipline  shall  be  adopted  until  it  shall 
have  been  in  the  possession  of  the  conference 
at  least  one  day,  and  shall  have  been  printed 
in  the  Daily  Advocate. 

19.  It  shall  be  in  order  for  any  member  to 
call  for  the  yeas  and  nays  on  any  question  be- 


Chap.  VIII.]  RTLES   OF   ORDER.  2-il 

fore  the  conference;  and  if  the  call  be  sus- 
tained by  one  hundred  members  present,  the 
vote  thereon  shall  be  taken  by  yeas  and  nays. 
If  not  so  sustained,  members  voting  in  the 
minority,  if  the  number  voting  in  said  minority 
is  less  than  one  hundred,  may  have  their  votes 
recorded  by  name. 

20.  It   shall  be  in  order  to  move  that  the 
question  be  taken  without  further  debate    on 
any  measure  pending,  except  in  cases  in  which 
character   is   involved;    and    if    sustained    by 
a   vote   of   two  thirds,  the   question   shall    be 
taken. 

21.  The  motion  to  adjourn   shall  be   taken 
without  debate,  and  shall  always   be  in   order, 
except,  (1)  when  a  member  has  the  floor;  (2) 
when  a  question  is  actually  put,  or   a  vote   is 
being  taken  ;  (3)  when  the  question  is  pending 
on  seconding  the  demand  for  the  previous  ques- 
tion ;  (4)  when  the  previous  question  has  been 
called  and  sustained,  and  is  still  pending ;  and 
(5)  when  a  motion  to  adjourn  has  been  nega- 
tived and  no  business  or  debate  has  intervened. 

22.  Members    presenting    memorials,    peti- 
tions, and  other  papers  for  reference,  shall  pre- 
pare the  paper  by  writing  in  a  plain  hand  on 
the  back  of  it  the  following  items,  in  the  follow- 
ing order,  namely : 

16 


242  RULES   OF   ORDER.  [Chap.  VIII. 

(1.)  Name  of  the  member  presenting  the 
paper. 

(2.)  Conference  from  which  it  comes. 

(3.)  Pastoral  charge  of  the  conference  send- 
ing it. 

(4.)  Subject  to  which  it  relates. 

(5.)  First  name  on  the  petition. 

(6.)  Number  of  other  petitioners. 

(7.)  The  Committee  to  which  he  desires  it 
referred. 

Papers  thus  presented  shall  be  delivered  to 
the  secretary  of  the  conference,  and  by  him 
sent  to  the  committee,  according  to  indorse- 
ment, and  announced  in  the  journal  of  the 
day. 

23.  When  any  member  shall  move  the  refer- 
ence of  any  portion  of  the  journal  of  an  animal 
conference  to  any  committee,  he  shall  at  the 
same  time  furnish  a  copy  of  the  portion  he  wishes 
referred,  prepared  as  already  provided  in  the 
case  of  memorials. 

24.  All  resolutions  contemplating  verbal  al- 
teratiofts  of  the  Discipline  shall  state  the  lan- 
guage of  the  paragraph  and  the  line  proposed  to 
be  altered,  and  also  the  language  proposed  to  be 
substituted. 

25.  All  committees  proposing  changes  of  Die- 
cipline  shall  not  only  recite  the  paragraph  and 


Chiip.  VIII.]  RULES   OF   ORDER.  243 

line  proposed  to  be  amended,  but  also  the  para- 
graph, as  amended,  complete. 

26.  All  written  motions,  reports,  and   com- 
munications to  the  conference  shall  be  passed 
to  the  secretary,   to  be  by  him   read   to  the 
conference. 

27.  All  committees  shall  furnish  duplicates 
of  their  reports. 

28.  A  call  for  a  vote  by  orders  shall  be  made 
and  seconded  by  members  of  the  same  order. 

29.  When  voting  by  orders  the   separation 
shall  be  merely  in  regard  to  the  taking,  announc- 
ing, deciding,  and  recording  the  vote  of  each 
order  on  the  question  on  which   the  separate 
vote  is  ''demanded."     Any  incidental    matter 
bearing  upon  such  vote  shall  be  decided  by  the 
conference  acting  "as  one  body."     In  taking 
the  vote  by  orders,  the  names  of  the  delegates, 
first  of  the  ministerial  and  then  of  the  lay  dele- 
gates, shall  be  called,  and  each  member  shall  an- 
swer aye  or  no. 

30.  All  demonstrations  of  approval  or  disap- 
proval during  the  progress  of  debate  shall  be 
deemed  a  breach  of  order. 

31.  These  rules  shall  not  be  suspended^  ex- 
cept by  a  vote  of  two  thirds  of  the   members 
present  and  voting. — Journal,  1884,  p.  49. 


244  TRIAL   OF   APPEALS. 


Appeals  of  Traveling  Ministers  or  Preachers. 

"  In  all  cases  of  trial  and  conviction  under  the 
provisions  of  ^[  214—222,  an  appeal  shall  be 
allowed  to  a  judicial  conference,  constituted  as 
hereinafter  provided,  if  the  condemned  person 
signify  his  intention  to  appeal  at  the  time  of 
his  conviction,  or  at  any  time  thereafter  when 
lie  is  informed  thereof. 

"  The  several  annual  conferences  in  the  United 
States  shall,  at  each  session,  select  seven  elders, 
men  of  experience  and  of  sound  judgment  in 
the  affairs  of  the  Church,  who  shall  be  known 
as  Triers  of  Appeals. 

"When  notice  of  appeal  is  given  to  the  pres- 
ident of  an  annual  conference,  he  shall  proceed, 
with  due  regard  to  the  wishes  and  rights  of  the 
appellant,  to  designate  three  conferences,  con- 
veniently near  that  from  which  the  appeal  is 
taken,  whose  Triers  of  Appeals  shall  constitute 
a  judicial  conference,  and  to  fix  the  time  and 
place  of  its  session,  and  to  give  notice  thereof 
to  all  concerned.  When  said  conference  shall 
have  assembled  it  shall  be  competent  to  try  ap- 
peals from  any  conference  conveniently  near, 
which  may  be  presented  to  it,  due  notice  having 
been  given  to  all  concerned. 

"  The  appellant  shall  have  the  right  of  per- 


TRIAL   OF   APPEALS.  24:5 

emptory  challenge,  jet  so  that  the  triers  present, 
and  ready  to  proceed  with  the  hearing,  shall 
not  fall  below  thirteen,  which  number  shall  be 
required  for  a  quorum. 

"  A  bishop  shall  preside  in  the  judicial  confer- 
ence, and  shall  decide  all  questions  of  law,  sub- 
ject to  an  appeal  to  the  General  Conference. 
The  conference  shall  appoint  a  secretary,  who 
shall  keep  a  faithful  record  of  all  the  proceed- 
ings, and  shall,  at  the  close  of  the  trial,  trans- 
mit the  records  made  and  the  papers  submitted 
in  the  case,  or  certified  copies  thereof,  to  the 
secretary  of  the  preceding  General  Conference, 
to  be  filed  and  preserved  with  the  papers  of  that 
body.  But  if  the  case  be  remanded  for  a  new 
trial,  the  papers  submitted  shall  be  returned  to 
the  secretary  of  the  annual  conference  of  which 
the  accused  is  a  member.  And  when  the  case 
of  any  preacher  who  has  been  suspended  or  ex- 
pelled is  remanded  for  a  new  trial,  he  shall  be 
suspended  from  all  ministerial  service  until  the 
next  ensuing  session  of  the  annual  conference. 

"  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  secretary  of  the 
annual  conference  carefully  to  preserve  the  min- 
utes of  the  trial,  whether  before  a  committee  or 
before  the  conference,  and  all  the  documents 
relating  to  the  case,  together  with  the  charge 
or  charges  and  the  specification  or  specifications, 


24(3  TRIAL   OF   APPEALS. 

which  minutes  and  documents  only,  in  case  of 
an  appeal  from  the  decision  of  an  annual  con. 
ference,,  shall  be  presented  to  the  judicial  con- 
ference in  evidence  on  the  case. 

"  In  all  cases  where  an  appeal  is  made,  and 
admitted  by  the  judicial  conference,  the  appel 
lant  shall  state,  either  personally  or  by  his  rep- 
resentative, the  grounds  of  his  appeal,  showing 
cause  why  he  appeals,  and  he  shall  be  allowed 
to  make  his  appeal  without  interruption.  After 
which  the  representatives  of  the  annual  confer- 
ence from  whose  decision  the  appeal  is  made 
shall  l)e  permitted  to  respond  in  presence  of  the 
appellant,  who  shall  have  the  privilege  of  reply- 
ing to  such  representatives,  which  reply  shall 
close  the  pleadings  on  both  sides.  Counsel  on 
both  sides  shall  be  members  of  an  annual  con- 
ference. This  done,  the  parties  shall  withdraw, 
and  the  judicial  conference  shall  decide  the  case. 

"  The  General  Conference  shall  carefully  re- 
view the  decisions  of  questions  of  law  contained 
in  the  records  and  documents  transmitted  to  it 
from  the  judicial  conferences,  and  in  case  of 
serious  error  therein  shall  take  such  action  as 
justice  may  require. 

"  Appeals  from  an  annual  conference  in  the 
United  States  not  easily  accessible  may,  at  the 
discretion  of  the  president  thereof,  be  heard  by 


TRIAL   OF   APPEALS.  24:7 

a  judicial  conference  selected  from  among  the 
more  central  conferences.  Appeals  from  a  con- 
ference other  than  those  in  the  United  States 
may  be  heard  by  a  judicial  conference  called  to 
meet  at  or  near  New  York  by  the  bishop  in 
charge  of  said  conference ;  or  the  appeal  may 
be  heard  directly  by  the  General  Conference. 

"  After  a  preacher  shall  have  been  regularly 
tried  and  expelled  he  shall  have  no  privileges 
of  society  or  sacraments  in  our  Church  without 
confession,  contrition,  and  satisfactory  reforma- 
tion."— Discipline,  1884,  H  247-256. 


218  FORMULAS.  [Chap.  IX, 


CHAPTER  IX. 

FORMULAS. 

SECTION    I. — Formulas  for  Preachers   in 
Charge. 

WE  would  not  attempt  to  settle  the  precise 
"orm  in  any  given  case,  or  intimate  that 
other  modes  of  expression  may  not  be  equally 
proper;  but  we  submit  the  following  brief 
forms,  as  general  guides  to  young  and  inex- 
perienced pastors : — 

I.— CERTIFICATE  OP  CHURCH  MEMBERSHIP. 


This  certifies  that  A.  B.,  the  bearer,  is  au  accept- 
able member  of  the Methodist  Episcopal  Church 

in  ,  and  is  affectionately  commended  to  the 

fellowship  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in 

— ,  or  in  any  other  Church  to  which  he  may  pre- 
sent this  certificate.  When  admitted  to  another 
charge,  his  relation  to  this  charge  will  cease. 

,  18  C.  D.,  Preacher  in  Charge. 


Sec.  I.]         FOR   PREACHERS   IN   CHARGE.  249 

IT.— EXHOETER'S  LICENSE. 


This  may  certify  that  A.  B.,  the  bearer,  having  been 
duly  recommended  by  the  class  of  which  he  is  a 
member,  is  hereby  authorized  to  hold  meetings  for 
prayer  and  exhortation  in  the  Methodist  Episcopal 

Church  on  N Circuit. 

C.  D.,  Preacher  in  Charge. 
N  Y 

,  rx .    i . 

Conference. 

Jan.  1,  18 


In  case  of  renewal,  let  it  be  signed  by  the  presiding  elder, 
or  by  the  preacher  in  charge,  as  president  of  the  Quarterly 
Conference,  "by  the  approval  of  the  Quarterly  Confer- 
ence." 


HL— NOTE  OF  RECOMMENDATION  TO  A  LOCAL  PREACHER. 


This  may  certify  that  A.  B.,  the  bearer,  is  a  regularly 
authorized  Local  Preacher  (Elder  or  Deacon)  in  tin. 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  D ,  N Confer- 
ence.                 A.  B.,  P.  E.  on  E.  Dis.,  N.  Con.,  or 
0.  D.,  Pr.  in  Charge  of  D.  Station. 
Jan.  1,  18 
D ,  N.  H. 


250 


FORMULAS. 


[Chap. 


IV.— CLASS-BOOK 


CLASS-BOOK, 
No.  1. 
D         Circuit, 

in  Life. 

fi 

MEMBERS. 

I 

Ja 

nuar 

\ 

*s 

N.  Conference. 

tn 

«o 

Si 

S. 

1. 

S. 

15. 

3 

T.  V., 

M. 
M 

F. 
F 

C.  D.,  Leader. 
A  B  

P.  st,  IT 
D  st.  5 

P- 

Pi 

& 

P- 
]). 

$10  00 
10  00 

Pr.  in  Clutrge. 

M 

F 

E.  F  

K  

p. 

[1. 

15  00 

Remember  tlie  fast 

W 

F 

G  II     

8  

\ 

10  00 

on  the  Friday  pre- 
ceding each  quar- 

Wd. 

H 

F. 
T 

J.  K  
L.  M  

M  
p  

!>• 

I'- 

p. 

8. 

P. 

1  00 

20  00 

terly  meeting. 
Jan  1  18 

S. 
8 

T. 
T 

N.  P  
K.  S  

Q  
K  

P- 

p. 

!i. 
P. 

5  00 
0  50 

M.— Married. 
8. — Unmarried. 
W.— Widower. 


Abbreviations. 

Wd.— Widow. 
F. — Full  connexion. 
T.-On  trial. 
p. — Present. 


a. — Absent 

s.— Sick. 

d. — Out  of  town. 


V.— CHURCH  REGISTER  FOE  A  SUCCESSOR. 

This  should  contain  the  names  and  residences  of  tin. 
local  preachers,  stewards,  class-leaders,  and  exhorters;  the 
board  of  trustees,  superintendents  of  Sabbath  schools,  and 
the  members  of  the  several  classes;  and  also  the  general 
plan  of  the  circuit,  the  time  and  place  for  Sabbath  preach- 
ing, weekly  lectures,  and  class  and  prayer-meetings. 


VI.— REGISTER   OF  THE  CHILDREN,  TO  BE   LEFT  FOR  A 

SUCCESSOR. 


Names. 

Parents. 

Residences. 

Remarks. 

A.  D. 

0.  B. 

10  Laurel-st. 

E.  F. 
G.  H. 

K.  L. 
M.N.- 

5  Orange-st. 
6  Elra-st. 

Sec.  I.]         FOR  PREACHERS   IN   CHARGE. 


251 


VII. — Money  for  benevolent  objects  should  be  carefully  done 
op  in  separate  parcels,  and  distinctly  labelled,  as  follows:  — 


! 
$IOO. 

MISSIONARY  MONET. 

NEWLAND  CIEOJIT. 

0.  D.,  Pr.  in  Cfuirge. 

$1OU. 

AMER.  BIBLE  SOCIETY. 

NEWLAND  CIRCUIT. 

C.  D.,  Pr.  in  Charge. 

VIII.— STEWARD'S    CEUTIFICATE. 


This  may  certify  that  the  estimate  for  the  support  of 
Rev.  A.  B.,  Preacher  in  Charge  of  Newland  Circuit, 
for  the  conference  year  ending  May  1,  18  ,  was 
$500.  Whole  claim  paid. 

C.  R,, 

B.  R., 

P.  S., 

K.  R.,  J 


>-  Steward*. 


IX.-BENEVOLENT  INSTITUTIONS. 

MEMBERSHIP. 


Societies. 

Annual 
Membership. 

Life 
Membership. 

Director 
foi  Life. 

Manager 
for  Life. 

Patron 
for  1  ift. 

Amortcsr.  Bible  Society. 

$3 

$80* 

$150 

Missionary  Society  of  the 
M  E  Church  

2 

20* 

$160* 

$500 

Sunday-School  Union  of 

the  M.  E.  Church  

1 

10* 

CO 

.  .. 

.  .. 

Tract  Society  of  the  M.  E. 

1 

10* 

26 

*  At  one  tlma 


252  FORMULAS.  [Chap.  fX, 


X.— WILLS. 

As  ministers  are  frequently  called  upon  to  write  or  ad- 
vise in  reference  to  the  making  of  wills,  we  subjoin  the 
following: — 

I. — Commencement  of  Wills. 

In  the  name  of  God.     Amen. 

I,  (A.  B.,  of  C ,  &c.,)  being  of  sound  mind  and 

memory,  do  make,  publish,  and  declare  this  my  last  \v\V 
and  testament. 

II. — Bequests  and  Devises. 

Let  these  be  arranged  in  order,  thus :  "  First.  I  give  and 
bequeath  unto the  sum  of dollars,  and  the  re- 
ceipt of  the  treasurer  of  the  Society  shall  be  a  sufficient 
discharge  therefor  to  my  executors ;"  or,  "  I  give  and  de- 
vise the  following  (here  describe  the  property)  to  the 

trustees  of ,  and  its  use  to  be  controlled  by  the  said 

trustees,  or  their  successors  in  office,  for  the  use  and  benefit 

of ."     (Here  state  the  benevolent  object  to  which  it 

shall  be  applied.) 

III. — Appointment  of  Executor  and  in  testimonium 

And  I  do  hereby  appoint  0.  D.,  of  W ,  to  be  the 

sole  executor  of  this  my  last  will  and  testament,  hereby 
revoking,  annulling,  and  declaring  void  all  former  wills  by 
me  at  any  time  heretofore  made. 

In  witness  whereof  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand  and 
seal  this day  of ,  &c. 

IV. — Attestation  of  Wills. 

Signed,  sealed,  and  declared  by  the  said  A.  B.  to  be  his 
last  will  and  testament  in  the  presence  of  us,  who,  at  his 
reauest,  and  in  his  presence,  and  in  the  presence  of  each 


Sec.  I.]         FOR    PREACHERS   IN   CHARGE.  253 

other  have  hereunto  subscribed  our  names  and  respective 
places  of  residence  as  witnesses. 

M.M.,ofC ,  ]  ~~ 

P.  M.,  of  0 ,   I  A.  B.          j  IN  s.[ 

M.  K,  of  C .  J  

(Let  there  be  three  witnesses.) 

If  the  will  be  signed  by  a  third  person  for  the  testator, 
t'«e  attestation  should  be  as  follows: — 

Signed  by  the  said  E.  F.  in  our  presence,  and  in  the 
presence  of  the  said  A.  B.,  and  by  his  express  direction, 
and  by  the  said  A.  B.  at  the  same  time,  published  and  de- 
clared as  his  last  will  and  testament  in  the  presence  of  tht 
said  E.  F.  and  of  us,  who  each,  in  the  presence  of  the  other 
and  of  the  «aid  A.  B.,  and  of  the  said  E.  F.,  have  hereunto 
set  our  hands  as  subscribing  witnesses. 


254  FORMULAS.  [Chap.  IX. 

SECTION  II. — Formula*  for  Presiding  Elders. 

[In  all  cases  of  licensing  a  Local  Preacher,  or  recommendation  for  admis- 
sion to  the  traveling  connection  or  f«r  ordination  by  &  District  Conference, 
the  license  or  recommendation  should  state  that  the  person  was  du'y 
recommended  to  the  District  Conference  by  the  Society  of  which  he 
Is  a  member,  or  by  the  Quarterly  Conference,  as  the  case  may  be.] 

L-LICENSE  OF  A  LOCAL  PREACHER. 


To  all  whom  it  may  concern. 

This  may  certify  that  A.  B.,  the  bearer, -having 
been  duly  recommended  by  the  society  of  which  he  if 
a  member,  and  having  been  examined  by  us  concern- 
ing his  gifts,  grace,  and-  usefulness,  is  judged  by  us  tc 
be  a  proper  person  to  be  licensed,  and  is  hereby  au 
thorized  to  preach  the  Gospel  in  the  M.  E.  Church. 
Done  at  a  Quarterly  Conference  held  at  Newland, 
this  second   day  of  May,  A.  D.  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and 

Signed  by  order  and  in  behalf  of  said  conference. 
N.  M.,  Secretary.  C.  P.,  Presiding  Elder. 


IL— RECOMMENDATION  TO  THE  TRAVELLING  CONNEXION. 


To  the  Bishop  and  members  of  the  N.  Conference, 

to  le  held  at  L ,  May  1,  18 

DEAR  FATHERS  AND  BRETHREN, — 

We,  the  members  of  the  Quarterly  Conference  of 
Newland  Circuit,  being  acquainted  with  the  gifts, 
grace,  and  usefulness  of  our  brother  N".  P.,  do  hereby 
recommend  him  as  a  suitable  person  to  be  admitted 
on  trial  in  the  travelling  connexion,  he  having  been 
examined  by  us  on  the  subject  of  doctrines  and  disci- 
pline. 

Done  at  a  Quarterly  Conference  held  at  Newland, 
April  1, 18      ,  and  signed  by  order  and  in  behalf 
of  said  conference. 
N.  F.,  Secretary.  D.  G.,  Presiding  Elder. 


Sec.  II.]  FOR   PRESIDING    ELDERS.  255 

IIL— RECOMMENDATION  FOR  DEACON  OR  ELDER'S  ORDERS. 


To  the  Bishoj)  and  mtmbers  of  the  N.   Conference, 
to  be  held  at  G ,  Hay  1,  18 

DEAR  FATHERS  AND  BRETHREN, — 

We,  the  members  of  the  Quarterly  Conference  of 
New!  and  Circuit,  being  acquainted  with  the  gifts, 
grace,  and  usefulness  of  our  brother  N.  P.,  do  here- 
by recommend  him  as  a  suitable  person  to  be  or- 
dained deacon  (or  elder)  in  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  he  having  been  for  four  consecutive  years  a 
regularly  licensed  local  preacher,  (or  having  held  the 
office  of  deacon  for  four  consecutive  years,)  and  hav- 
ing been  examined  before  us  on  the  subject  of  doc- 
trines and  discipline. 

Done  at  a  Quarterly  Conference  held  at  Newland, 
Jan.  1,  18  ,  and  signed  in  behalf  of  said  Quar- 
terly Conference.  P.  G.,  Presiding  Elder. 

S.  II.,  Secretary. 


If  the  local  deacon  cannot  attend  the  annual  conference, 
Le  must  subscribe  his  name  to  a  note  like  the  following, 
which  should  be  appended  to  the  preceding  recommenda- 
tion : — 


This  may  certify  that  I  firmly  believe  the  doctrines 
taught  by  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and  cor- 
dially approve  of  her  form  of  Discipline. 

Newland,  Jan.  1,  18  N.  P. 


It  is  recommended  that  in  all  cases  the  signature 
of  the  local  deacon  be  appended  to  a  note  like  the 
above,  whether  he  can  or  cannot  attend  the  annual 
conference. 


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